Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 11

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part Eleven

“The greatest delight which the fields and woods minister, is the suggestion of an occult relationship between man and the vegetable. I am not alone and unacknowledged. They nod to me and I to them.”

– Waldo Emerson

April 3, 2018 – Tuesday – Memaloose State Park, Columbia Gorge, Oregon

We had a long drive ahead of us, about a 5 hour drive. We took Hwy 20 east from Newport, and it was a nice drive through some beautiful country side. We then connected to Hwy 34 that took us to the Hwy 5 interstate. We then got on to I-205 to bypass most of Portland, then to I-84 that took us into the Columbia Gorge, and the great Columbia River. This will be my first time in the gorge.

Many of the places we drive through or stay for a short while, would have been nice to stay longer, but we are on of a schedule. This would be a nice place to spend some time at it seems. It is a nice and quaint campground for the most part.

I-84 is a busy road connecting east to west through the Columbia Gorge. Most of our trip so far, traffic has been minimal and relaxing to drive. Traffic really never existed until now.

We found the campground with no problem, but getting to it was another story. It was across the highway with a concrete barrier dividing us. I was not sure how far we would have to go before we would find a place to turn around. I thought, “Who the heck designed this layout anyway?” We had to go further on the highway to get access to the other side of the highway where there was a rest stop, then back track 3 miles to the campground entrance.

Entering the campground, I was not to impressed with what I saw. The campground was small and we didn’t have very many choices that would work for us. I stopped by the Camp Hosts trailer to hopefully give us a helping hand. She directed me to a site that she thought might work for us. We took the site. I found out the next day, from a different Camp Host, that the site we had taken was the worst site for flooding. She recommended a site next to the river, and when I checked it out it seemed it could work. My other concern was taking a site that was next to the river, and if someone reserved it I would have to move. Most people will reserve sites next to water. I have to check-in everyday to reserve my site which is a pain in the rear.

This current site we chose had no flat areas to set up a tent. The only area for a tent was sloping in two different directions, 90 degrees from each other. It sounds like an uncomfortable night of sleeping.

The weather today consisted of high clouds, some blue sky, and winds.

I was trying to get the tent up quickly while fighting the winds that was making it a challenge. If it was cold outside, I didn’t notice while I was using a lot of energy putting up the tent. I was shedding off clothing from over heating. Once I got the tent up, the winds died down and I got to relax a bit and start to notice my surroundings. The first thing I noticed was the traffic noise from the cars and truck, with the campsite being right next to the highway. I would quickly find out, it was continuous during the day and night. We also had two busy train lines on both sides of the river. One on the Oregon side where the tracks were very close to the campground, and below us. This helped to muffle the sound a bit. And tracks on the Washington side of the river. The trains at night often ran about every half hour. I wasn’t paying too much attention how often the trains ran during the day. I didn’t mind much with the trains coming through because I enjoyed watching them. I have alway had a thing about trains at a very young age. Much of the loads the trains carried was coal and oil. The noise from the trains were nothing compared to the traffic noise. I had my doubts we would be staying at this campground long. I was ready to leave the next day for another campground. We had a small window of good weather supposedly on Wednesday, and more rain the rest of the week. It is all about the weather.

As in the last campground we were in, the trash cans are located by the entrance, which means we have to drive to them. The restrooms were also a bit of a distance from us.

The campground is overall a nice campground with beautiful features like being close to the river. That is if you want to call the Columbia River, a river at all. It just looks like a continues stream of dammed lakes. Looking across the river to the Washington mountains gave us a nice view. the nice trees sparely spread out on the grounds, the grassy areas, and vegetation, but for the actual campsites, in my opinion they are bad for tent camping.

We have the City of Hood River to the west of us 6 miles away, that has a Safeway and Walmart. And we have the town of The Dalles east of us about the same distance as Hood River. Either way I go I have to deal with a backtracking to get back to camp.

There is a lot of bird activity in the area, and Nanook and I just saw a gray squirrel. These little creatures of nature adds wonder to our experiences.

I also found a piece of birch bark on the ground from a birch tree. I will keep it for a good fire starting tinder. Knowing the resources that nature provides to us is good and valuable knowledge to have. With a small spark to the shavings made by the scraping of a knife to this bark, it brings the beginnings of a fire easily. For me, it bring me ever closer to the natural world. It gives a kind of kinship between man and nature that most of us have lost. It not only gives confidence in ones skills using what nature provides to us, we can bring a deeper relationship with nature. Nature is not something we must conquer, but a friend to be respected, and to be grateful for all that she gives. Without the many forms nature provides, life could not exist. But it seems most of us have forgotten this fact, with being consumed and lost in our modern, and materialistic world.

Evening Entry

We went to the grocery store in Hood River for a few things, and to also find a Wi-Fi for possible alternative campgrounds. I found a Wi-Fi at Mc Donalds, and no luck in finding an alternative campground.

After returning to our campground, I was talking to the Camp Host, and she told me to just look for another campsite here, and recommended one next to the river. I would have to think about my options.

With the long drive, being tired, and the frustrations I was having, it turned out to be a nice day with the sun shining in the late afternoon. There were signs of rain approaching with clouds beginning to roll in from the northwest, with a sense of rain not far away.

The Ranger dropped by our camp, and she blocked out the camp I picked by the river. I would not have to deal with making reservations. It is a nicer campsite then the one we are in now. So we will move to the new site tomorrow. It is a hassle moving camp, but it might be worth it. Monica, the ranger and I talked for a bit, and we have a lot in common, especially with the native people. We talked more when she was working at the kiosk this evening, while I was walking the boys.

After we got back to camp darkness was settling in. I decided to do some reading before turning in. The boys are just hanging out, checking the new environment out for any critters that might show up near camp. The campground was nearly empty. Before we turned in, I spent a few minutes enjoying the darkness of night, feeling at peace from this hectic day.

I have been thinking about where to go next to avoid this wet weather. The new tent is obvious not good in wet weather, since the last one only lasted a month. We will see how long this one lasts.

The night time temperature feels comfortable, as with the feelings of being peaceful. Enjoying the silhouette of the trees against the dark night skies. For a minute I thought I actually saw stars. Not too long ago the skies looked like they were preparing for rain. And a couple of hours later the stars are out. The ever changing fickleness of the weather. These times make it special to be in nature, to experience nature fully with everything she brings to us. These little things, when fully aware, makes these moments special. And they are even more special experiencing them with the boys.

April 4, 2018 – Wednesday

It seems I must have slept fairly well, even though I was leaning in two different directions with the slopes of the land underneath me. I continued waking up with those continued doubts if I will make to Alaska, and will I survive financially? But when I think about Alaska, I think of the beauty, and the wildness of the place. I think about the Movie “North To Alaska,” with John Wayne, and the theme song playing in my head.

We didn’t get any rain last night, or this morning. It is overcast with some low dark rain clouds creeping in, yet it doesn’t feel like rain. It is actually a beautiful morning in nature.

On our short morning walk, the boys and I walked by our new campsite we will be moving to today. It looks small, very small, but has a great view by the river, and the mountains on the Washington side. I hope it works out. The site we are moving to will be our smallest site we have been in. Very little room for the boys to move around in. We will also be further away from the restrooms. I will have to sneak a pee when no one is around, since I really don’t have any privacy.

Afternoon Entry

Memaloose Island and the State of Washington beyond

The move to our new camp went quickly and with no hitches. I was hesitant about the new site. It felt like the size of a postage stamp. One has to sacrifice space for prime waterfront property, even in campgrounds. The people that would have been to the left of us, had left, leaving us with a much nicer view of the gorge. It makes our site look bigger. The boys settled in quickly to their new surroundings with many more things to look at. It doesn’t take much to please them. I believe they really like this life style we are living. I have a good view of Memaloose Island – “Island of the Dead,” which I am told is a sacred burial site for Native Americans of the Columbia River, that were known as the Chinook Indians. The name, Memaloose is derived from the Chinook Indian word Memalust, meaning “to die.”

Memaloose Island – “The Island of the Dead”

On October 29, 1805, Lewis and Clark called Memaloose Island “Sepulchar Island.” It was one of several islands that Lewis and Clark commented on that had burial vaults of the remains of Indian tribes that lived along the Columbia river. Many of these islands are now covered by the backwaters of the Columbia dams. Only one-third of this particular island can be seen above the river today.

Until recent times, the Indian peoples of the Columbia River did not bury their dead. Instead, bodies were wrapped in robes or tule mats and placed in cedar vaults on islands such as Memaloose Island, as one form of placing the bodies to rest. There where thirteen such vaults on this island that were noted by Lewis during their passing of the island.

A collector of Indian artifacts, James Hartley, looted and destroyed many burial sites including the one on Memaloose Island. He was found dead in September 1896 in an old canoe on a small island in Deadman’s Lake (Cowlitz Co., WA). In the canoe, his hands and feet were bound by writhers of hazel and fastened to the stem and stern of the canoe. A stake made of hazel was driven through his body just below his breast bone. Torture and death was done to those who disturbed these burial sites of the Indian peoples. These burial grounds were seen as sacred to the Indian people, and death for those who showed no respect for them by destroying, looting, and showing disrespect for the resting souls. At one time in the early1980s there was believed to be 30 Indian grave sites on the island.

When I first saw this monument I knew it was not placed on the Island for the dead souls of the Indian people, but rather for some white man that carried a big ego with him by displaying such a monument resting upon his grave. His name was Victor Trevitte. He put in his Will to be buried on the island with his Indian friends. It was very unlikely that Trevitte or his family ask permission to have his grave site be placed on this sacred island of the dead, by the Native peoples in the area. It is something Native people just did not do.

His memorial was on March 10, 1883. He was a pioneer printer, businessman, state legislator, and supposedly a friend of the Indian people in the area. Trevitte requested burial on the island to be among the people he supposedly loved. Due to the rising waters of the dam, relocations of most of these Indian graves were relocated during the 1930s. Victor Treville grave site, as with his monument remained. And with some Indian burial vaults that were placed on higher ground of the Island.

Memaloose Island is one of several “islands of the dead” sacred sites once found on the Columbia River. And now erased from the past that some white settlers only saw as relics to collect, or destroy. Would they do this horrific act against their own? Would we do this? Many acts of genocide, atrocities, and hatred against these indigenous peoples, on this land, and other lands sadly still occurs. And many still have not learned from our dark past. With our cloudy vision of hatred and fear, and greed, we still cannot see what we had done to a once thriving peoples. A peoples that lived with the land for many thousands of years, that saw this land as sacred to their very existence. And for the European settlers, land and natural resources were just to be taken for their own use, and self-indulgence. Even if it required destroying a whole race of peoples to get it. A model that still exists today. And even worse, we celebrate it through a strong sense of nationalism. Of who we are as a people.

In North America, there was a very rough estimate of 60 million to a 100 million native people living here for tens of thousands of years, prior to the arrival of the Europeans coming here. If we think about it, each foot step we take on this land, their were many foot steps from the native peoples, imprinted on this very land. Where they may have slept, had camp fires, and where their children had ran and played. Do we ever think about them? For me, there is a deep sadness, and loss I feel in what we had done to these original peoples.

My whole view of this area, now has a much different meaning to it. I see it as a sacred place, not just a place to camp. A place to show respect to.

Our view from camp over looking the Columbia River

I find that once I get settled into our camps, and begin to look around, I see the beauty of my surroundings and feel a gratitude in those experiences. I feel grateful that I have the boys by my side on this adventure. It would not be the same without them. It is hard to explain the beauty in nature that I see and feel here. It cannot be explained enough in words.

Looking across the Columbia River (that now seems like just a series of damned lakes, of this once great river), over to the Washington side, viewing the spectacular scenery of the mountains and plateaus rising above the river, imagining what this place must have looked like when only the native people were here, and the land untouched by modern day man.

I hear in the near distance Canadian geese honking away, and the echos against the steep walls of the gorge.

There are plenty of freight trains on both sides of the river, carry freight, oil, and coal. I was watching a very long train on the Washington side carrying oil tankers. I was thinking about the possibility of a derailment of coal or oil, and the environmental consequences of such a disaster? With the health consequences to human life and animal life?

In June, 3, 2016, a Union Pacific unit train carrying nearly three million gallons of oil derailed by the Oregon town of Mosier. Of the supposedly safer tanker cars on the train, 16 derailed, spilling 42,000 gallons of oil. The volatile Bakken crude ignited, causing a fire that took14 hours to put out. It sent up a plume of toxic smoke and ash that could be seen for miles. It contaminated the Mosier water system, and oil spilling into the Columbia River for miles. How clean is the Columbia River? Today, toxic contaminates are mercury, DDT, PCBs, and PBDE flame-retardants, PAHs, arsenic, copper, lead, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products. The dams along the Columbia River also pollutes the river with oil spills. If you think we have clean water in our fresh water creeks, streams, and river systems, you better think again? And it is all human created since the Europeans first stepped on this land we call North America. (To this day I am writing this on November 11, 2023, oil and coal are still transported by rail along the Columbia River Gorge).

The Camp Host said it was okay to pick up twigs, so I am picking up some twigs from two dead downed trees nearby camp for a fire.

Midday when I was getting our camp set up and almost complete, it did begin to lightly sprinkle. We then headed for the grocery store, still sprinkling. On our return to camp, the weather turned absolutely beautiful. A gorgeous day along the Columbia River. Most of the campers at the campground had left. The traffic noise at our new site seems to be a bit quieter. The only place for the tent was right next to where the camper’s parking is at the site to our left. Hopefully we will get lucky and have no neighbors in that site.

In the area we are camped, there is a slight drop off where there is a grassy area, then a large patch of blueberry bushes. I was told there was also poison oak. There are lots of ground squirrels in the grassy area that Nanook is observing, while Tokata is napping from the busy day of setting up our new camp. It is hard work supervising me.

Two storms are projected for the weekend. We plan to leave on the first part of next week. I wanted to spend a little time at the Columbia Gorge, so I can scratch that off the list for things to do. It is amazing here. I was seeing this area with child’s eyes, so wondrous, magical, and beautiful. This is a childhood dream of mine to live in nature. It only took me many decades to get here.

April 5, 2018 – Thursday

Last night at about 8:30 pm, we went to bed. It was a beautiful evening, and with no rain. The temperature was around 60 deg. I could barely hear any traffic noise from the highway, but the trains heading east were very loud, almost scary sounding. Sounding like they were right on top of us. The bright train light beams would light up the whole tent. It was like in the scenes of a movie, when one would open the door of their house, and the train would be barreling down on them. The trains going westward weren’t as loud. I could also hear the trains across the river.Last night we also had a river paddle boat come by, that was cool to see. Then an occasional barge. I saw the one last night, and one this morning making things pretty exciting. Very few small boats have used this stretch of river for fishing. This river would be the last place I would fish in with it’s toxic laden soup. I think of the poor creatures who really have no place to get clean water that once were pure of man’s toxic waste.

The winds were blowing, coming and going, and with little rain falling. There was a light rain during the night. I had the window covers open, occasionally checking for any wetness coming in the tent. The fir trees helped block the rain next to our tent. Then the rain was beginning to come down a little harder, so I thought it was a good idea to close the window flaps. It was hard getting out of my nice comfortable sleeping bag to close the window covers, but much better than waking to a wet tent inside.

This morning we got up at 9:00 am, took a short walk, and paid for another night. The temp. was 50 deg., overcast and misty. I talked with the Ranger at the kiosk while paying for the night, and he asked how long I was going to stay? I told him possibly Tuesday. He said he would work with me on how I wanted to pay, and he would block out the site until Tuesday. A very nice guy and found the Rangers in many campgrounds very helpful and workable with the campers.

Our walks are somewhat short due to the lack of trails here. The only place to really walk is along the campground road. It is a beautiful morning walk enjoying the views along side the Columbia River.

A Tug and barge came by this morning, moving slowly down the river.

It is raining now, but just with a light sprinkle. I did put up the canopy yesterday, so we have some protection from the wet weather. If one has the room for a canopy, it is well worth having both in the winter and summer. One just has to be aware of winds. The canopy is nice to have because it gives one the experiences of being outside much more, as with being a necessity for doing the cooking, and as for me, writing in the journal, or just reflecting or observing, in listening while in nature. But I also enjoy the openness of not having it. I find it to confining at times. Both the boys are under the canopy with me, then Takota moved to huddle against the tent. His way of saying, “let me in the tent, please.” But not when he is all wet! He is getting some protection from the fir tree canopy.

I said a prayer to the spirits of the area today, and gave an offering of tobacco. In this prayer it is simply asking for allowing us to be here, asking for the protections for me and the boys, and any wisdom and knowledge the spirit beings can bring to me in having a better understanding of the natural world, to be a better steward of the land, of the air, of the water, and the respect of fire. The four elements of life. On our travels from camp to camp I also ask my spirit helpers to give us protection, safety, strength, support, and wisdom. And to provide us with a nice campsite. So far we have gotten these things provided to us.

I have been saying this for a while, but it is now time to toss the air mattress in the trash, and replace it with the new one we have. I tend to keep things as long as I can before they no longer are functional. This mattress has been a stretch.

I am finding my way around my Smart Phone and I am realizing it is pretty smart after all. It is a useful tool when it works. And I am finding it actually takes pretty good photos. It is easy to carry around vs. carrying a camera around, and much easier to photograph with the two boys.

This morning by the river, I thought I saw a young osprey. Other birds I have seen here are the junco, Steller’s jay, robins, crows, the gray heron, and I thought I saw two bald eagles flying along a ridge line to the south of us. Also I saw a woodpecker, and doves, and heard Canadian geese. I have been hearing a bird of prey calling each morning.

One of the priorities in a good camp, is a good place I can pee in privacy. I found a spot in our new camp as along we have no campers next to us.

Mid-Afternoon Entry

The rains have seemed to stop for the moment, but looking towards the west, more is to come. Because I am not familiar with the area, it is hard telling how much rain will actually fall. Will it be heavy downpours, or light rain that we have been getting mostly in Oregon? The light sporadic rains I can handle. The on and off rains (although somewhat light) we had for four days, consecutively at Harrison Beach was a bit to much with having a leaking tent, the boys and I being constantly wet did become a bit overwhelming, in pushing my limits of tolerance.

Although camping has it’s undesirable limits at times during the late fall, winter, and early spring months, seldom does one have to deal with crowds of people, the campgrounds are usually peaceful and quiet, and there is always the beauty of the changing weather with her many moods during these times.

We are suppose to be experiencing high winds through the gorge from the west of 20 mph. I hope the tent survives. I will lower the canopy.

The roaring winds we had during the night last night, that came from the west didn’t seem to bother the tent much. We have no protection or wind blocks for the tent. Most of the morning has been beautiful out.

Not many campers here, one guy just came in and camped three sites from us to our left.

Besides the highway noise it has been quiet here, and peaceful.

Afternoon Entry

On the Washington side, I counted 97 oil tanker cars on one train.

A little bit ago it was lightly sprinkling. So both Nanook and I were under the fir tree staying dry. Takota was next to the tent in the open. Then the rain got a bit heavier, dropping rain drops on my book I was reading. Then a steady rain began falling. Our only option now was to climb into the tent.

April 6, 2018 – Friday

We got up at 9:00 am after spending some special time with Nanook, when he climbed up onto my bed with me. His heavy body lying on top of me, while I gave him loving scratches. I was only able to take so much of his weight, then I booted him off of me.

I heard from the Camp Host this morning that we are going to get some sunshine today, and no rain.

It was 54 deg. It rained lightly off and on through the night.

The river was covered in a blanket of fog this morning giving the river a mystic feel and beauty to it.

It was a lovely morning indeed as it is every morning waking up to nature with her ever changing moods. This is why I enjoy camping during this time of year. So far on our journey, we haven’t had to get up in a heavy rain. It has always been a light rain, or even a pleasant mist.

Last night I was thinking of our next move. I was thinking about heading to Brooks Memorial State Park, but it is at an elevation of 3,800 feet with a possibility of snow. I wasn’t ready to drive in the snow with hauling a trailer. I have to think about this a bit more. Mike (our camping friend) was telling me we should camp at Wenatchee Confluence State Park. That can also be an option.

This morning on our walk we saw two children, a boy and a girl, and their parents camping in a RV. I was thinking, this is how these children learn about nature. It is not so much camping in a RV, although I don’t like them in nature, but it is about what the children will learn from the parents about nature, in experiencing nature. They won’t learn about nature playing with their toys, and electronic games, or watching TV in the comforts of the trailer with all the niceties of a kitchen, toilet and shower, and a warm place inside. In all the places we have camped, I have never seen the parents teaching their children about truly experiencing and being in nature, in learning to truly appreciate nature, in the beautiful wonders of nature. There are exceptions to this, usually when the children are camping with their grandparents. Or the parents themselves had grown up in nature, and they understood the value that nature can bring to children in their learning that goes beyond the material world. Because most parents have grown up in this material and synthetic world, they know nothing about teaching their children about nature. This is very sad to see, because they are missing out on the very beauty nature brings to us in the plants, the trees, and wildlife. The parents can also open the children’s minds with the old adventure stories like Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. And the sad thing is, mostly likely these children will carry on this tradition of their disconnection with nature.

One of the reason we took this journey, is to get closer and deeper into a relationship with the natural world. I knew, if I was in nature 24/7, spent silent moments watching and listening to nature, experiencing a beingness or presence in nature, to feel nature within through breathing deeply the cleansing air, my awareness would deepen my experiences with nature, and within myself in ways I could never imagine. It was an awakening in this relationship between me and nature.

I had learned through my reading, and from my experiences in nature. And learning much from the indigenous peoples of the world, and how they related to the natural world. In my practicing bushcraft skills that brought me closer to all things nature provides to us, with respect and appreciation.

Before the Europeans took a single step on this land, the indigenous peoples who had lived here for thousands of years, lived in harmony with the land, and to all life. They saw all life as being sacred. They took from nature only what they needed, and nothing. Since the native people did not write in words, they used their language in story telling, with their songs, in their ceremonies, their dancing, their prayers, and writing on rock faces in pictures and symbols, in their spiritual reverence for Mother Earth. For over four hundred years since the Europeans had arrived here, they have tried to eliminate these native peoples through greed and the theft of their lands – always wanting and taking more.

Genocide was not taken off the table, to rid these savages from the earth. They did not understand or see that these savages were more of the earth than the Europeans. Throughout the world, Modern day man has decimated the indigenous peoples everywhere for riches from the land. And it still continues today. We have learned nothing from the wrongs we have done. We don’t realize these indigenous peoples are here to teach us their wisdom and understanding of nature. We continue to push against the planet until she begins to rebel. And the Earth is now rebelling through climate change to teach them, or rid the planet of the human species. The humans will be part of the Sixth Mass Extinction.

“Imagine, if, they had listened… we’d all be sitting together around the fire today, listening to the sacred stories, respecting the waters, honoring the land, honoring one another…”

– Siksikaitsitapi, Blackfoot

Yesterday while talking with my oldest sister on the phone, a young bald eagle flew to a nearby pine tree, perch upon a branch looking for a meal in the river. He or she is just beginning to get the white on it’s head. The simple beauties in nature. I also got a glimpse of the elusive bird that never gives me a good enough look to be able to Identify it. It has a rust color under its wings, and a white tail that is visible in flight. Can you give it a guess? And a scrub jay is flying about our camp.

Evening Entry

Today was a nice day, with temp. at 68 deg., mostly cloudy with no indications of rain. The sun was visible a few times during the day. The evening is very pleasant with temp. at 63 deg., at 9:30 pm.

The light reflection of the river and the sky gave off a dark silhouette of the tree against the little light there was, giving a beautiful image for the eye to see.

I opened all the window coverings in the tent to get air circulating in the warm tent. Hopefully I won’t have to get up in the middle of the night to close them if rain comes in tonight. It is suppose to rain all day Saturday.

April 7, 2018 – Saturday

Last night it began to rain around 12:45 am. It seemed like it was not that much rain, just the light rain we usually get. But it went on and off for most of the night. I did have to get up to close the window coverings so me and the boys, and our bedding wouldn’t get soaking wet.

We got up around 9:00 am from being nice and comfortable in our warm beds. I was thinking today I will change my air mattress today.

The boys and I had our morning greetings with a “happy good morning.” I could not imagine them not being here with me. They are such a joy to be with. The rain had stopped, and it was much lighter in the tent then usual, which means the sun is shining.

It is 55 deg., mostly cloudy with those beautiful billowing clouds filling the morning sky, with a bit of the sun shining through the few openings between the clouds. I felt the sun’s warmth upon the earth. It was a glorious day to be in nature. It was nice seeing the blue sky, if only peeking through the mostly cloudy covering. The air smells fresh after the rain, and the birds are singing with delight. It feels so peaceful out, with the calm river nearby. Last night we had very little wind.

The campground is mostly full, maybe 3/4 full. There are a few tent campers, and the rest camping, if you call it that, in their trailers or RV’s. Most of the time it feels like camping in a glorified RV park with their generators cranking on, masking the sounds of nature.

One of the tent campers were setting up last night in the dark a couple of site from us. And they are gone this morning. One of my rules I have is never set up camp in the dark. My tent is always the first thing to get set up so we have protection from the weather if it comes. And one can see what they are doing. One couple spent a long time setting up their camp. They had a simple old fashion two person A-frame tent, and an elaborate tarp covering that attached to their truck. When they were finished, their truck looked like one big tarp. They packed up today. All that time and work to set up a camp to stay only one night. I don’t get it? The two pair of teenagers are packing up as well.

Preparing my coffee, I open the coffee packet, and smelled the wonderful aroma of the coffee blend. Too bad it doesn’t taste like it smells, but it is tasty none the less.

I had to chuckle in disbelief right now with me and the boys living in a tent, experience nature everyday, looking out towards the Columbia River, the mountains on the Washington side, writing in my journal, and drinking my coffee, next to a nice fire. It can’t get much better than that.

The winds are really beginning to pick up. I opened all the window covers to air out the tent. And hopefully equalize the pressure in the tent, with the winds blowing. My tent does not seem to be able to take a lot of wind. My canopy is toughing it out as well. I was just told we may be getting 30 mph winds tonight. I think we will have to cancel our dinner reservations tonight. No cooking tonight.

I saw an osprey flying by camp against the strong winds. I wonder what they think about that?

Afternoon Entry

I removed the canopy cover this morning when the wind was blowing. I did not want to take a chance of the cover ripping or the frame bending. I also put stronger stakes in for the tent.

I found our new tent was leaking in the same areas of our last tent. I will call Fred Meyers in Dalles or Yakima tomorrow for a replacement tent. Not having much luck with that tent.

April 8, 2018 – Sunday

We got up late this morning because of the rain at around 9:30 am. At 11:00 am, the winds began to pick up again. The skies are clear, but cold out. Two of the boy’s beds are soaked because of the leak in the tent from the rain last night. We also had a nice puddle forming inside the tent. We got a little break from the wind.

I will call Fred Meyers for a replacement. The one in Dalles didn’t have any, but they did have one in Yakima, so I had them hold it for me. I also called Columbia to complain about their poor quality in tents. The first 8 person tent lasted a month, this one a couple of days. But it gets much worse!

Afternoon Entry

The boys and I are inside the truck getting away from the wind. And the wind is getting much worse. A couple of hours ago, half of our tent collapsed and I am not sure how long the other half will remain upright. The guy lines are helping a little, but not much. Well, the tent failed the wind test and the leak test. A “Falure” for this tent.

The winds are suppose to stop around 5:00 pm this afternoon. I hope the other half of the tent survives. The winds are slowly settling down a little, but still having strong wind gusts.

Evening Entry

Most of the day we had brutal winds with half of our tent collapsed. Once we got a break in the wind I was able to get the tent upright, but the frame was weakened by the wind. Then the wind began again, and again half the tent collapsed once more, and then again it collapsed. I was getting frustrated and pissed off. I thought we were going to have to sleep in the truck tonight. The winds finally calmed at 7:00 pm, and I got the tent back upright. And at 7:50 pm, we went to bed. While I was getting into the tent I tripped over the entry threshold, and I lost it, kicking the tent and putting a big rip in the seam. The winds did finally stop, and the tent surprisingly did stay up for the night. We were very lucky.

April 9, 2018 – Monday

We got up at 7:00 am. The tent stayed up without collapsing on us during the night. We were very lucky the winds had stopped, as with the rain, or it would have been a very uncomfortable night.

I told the Camp Host we were leaving. She said, “why don’t you stay?” I told her we were out of here! And we packed up.

We stopped at the Fred Meyers at Dallas to see if they had a tent, and they didn’t, so we headed for the Fred Meyers in Yakima and to a new camp.

We crossed the border from Oregon to Washington State a short distance away from Memaloose State Park. It would take us about 21/2 hours to get to Yakima, Washington. I was thinking about camping near Yakima if we could find a campground.

In Washington, we found ourselves driving in the desert. It reminded me of the Nevada desert, at least in the beginning. Then to a place that was nothing like what I had experienced before. It was just very barren. A landscape that really didn’t interested me at the moment and just wanted to get through it.

We arrived in Yakima in 2 hours. It was a much bigger city than I expected. I am glad I had my smart phone for directions because it took some time to find Fred Meyers. I picked up our replacement tent, and drove to Yakima Sportsman State Park. I wasn’t to impressed by the campground, so we moved on. I looked at my smart phone once again for guidance to our next destination, Wenatchee Confluence State Park. Our camping friend Mike from Washington, suggested it. It helps having people who can recommend campgrounds when I find myself wandering blindly in new lands. Every campground is a surprise, and one never knows what they will find, in the good or in the bad. So far we have had pretty good luck in finding nice campgrounds on our travels. To bad we didn’t have better weather. If this one doesn’t look like a place we want to stay at, we will just take it for one night, and move on. It is getting too late looking for an another campground today. I am tired from the long drive, and I just want to settle in and relax.

The weather was good with mostly clear skies. Once we got into the mountains outside of Yakima, it cooled off quickly, and was hitting scattered snow in places. When we reached the mountain pass we were at 4100 ft elev. It was a beautiful drive through the mountains and seeing the snow on the ground. The air was refreshing with a cold mountain feel to it. Even with the phone guiding me, I wasn’t sure we were going in the right direction.

I had a difficult time finding the campground with all the streets and highways that were very confusing, that we had to weave through. But we were close to the campground, approx. 7 minutes away.

Continues in Part 12

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 10

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part Ten

“Erase all expectations when going into Nature, and just allow Nature to guide you into her world. She will open up to you in ways you could not have ever dreamed of.”

– Rick Theile

March 19, 2018 – Monday – South Beach State Park, Newport, Oregon

The day started out well with welcoming clear skies, and 38 deg.

We got up for our morning walk to greet the new day. Back at camp, I fed the boys and I began breaking camp.

It took less than 2 hours to pack up, and we were on the road at 10:30 am. Of course I was hoping to leave at 10:00 am, but we got a late start getting out of bed.

Our drive is longer then most, probably the longest so far, about 4 hours to get to our next destination, South Beach State Park in the city of Newport. I was looking at another campground a bit closer than South Beach, but discovered it was closed for the winter.

The long drive was beautiful, but tiring, and uncomfortable having to sit on my broken down cushion of my drivers seat. Driving through Coos Bay brought back memories of Mike and my bike trip to Canada. This is where our friend dropped us off to continue our bike trip. He gave us a ride in his car from Eureka to Coos Bay. We camped there one night, then set off again, heading north. The sand dunes were incredible there.

We made it to South Beach State Park at 2:30 pm. The weather was perfect the whole trip.

It took me a little bit to get oriented to the large campground. It was the largest campground we have been to so far. We did our typical drive through in search of the perfect campsite. We found one on our first go around and grabbed it. I unhitched the trailer then headed for the Visitor Center to double checked if it was available. They charged $21.00/night. I paid for 6 nights. We then went back to our new home to unpack, and begin to set up camp. As always, Takota and Nanook were excited to be out of the truck and in our new camp. The first thing I do in camp is to get the boys tied up, so I can get to work getting the camp set up. And the boys would do their sniffing and marking, then they would find a comfortable spot to relax and to watch and supervise me, making sure I was doing everything correctly. The first thing was finding where I was going to put the tent. I wanted to put it in towards the rear of the campsite, and away from the road, but the ground was uneven enough that would effect having a comfortable night sleep. Our campsite is in a large area, and provided us pretty good privacy overall. Our site backed up close to a wooded area for good privacy. With no luck finding a suitable site where I wanted to put the tent, I put it in a flat grassy area next to the truck and trailer. Not the best place because it was close to the road, but it was really my only choice. We had slept enough on uneven ground, and it does not make for a comfortable night sleep. I was also thinking the truck and trailer might act as a wind block. We also have a lot of vegetation around the camp for a good wind block. Most of this area consists of Lodgepole Pine, and Sitka Spruce, Shore Pine with different species of plants. Our camp feels like we are camping in the forest, and in a way, we are.

I was thinking about needing to go to the store for food, but because the wind was kicking up a bit, my focus was getting the tent up.

After getting the tent up, and a few things unloaded, we headed for the store. We went to the city of Newport to do our shopping that was just across the beautiful historic Yaquina Bay Bridge, about 10 minutes from the campground. At the end of town there was a Fred Meyers and a Safeway for our shopping needs. I bought some roasted chicken and salad for myself, and the boys had their kibble with a little cooked ham as a topping.

After dinner and waiting about a half hour, we went on a half mile trail walk to the beach. It was a nice trail with the exception that much of it was blacktop (paved). The beach was not that spectacular like other beaches are in Oregon, but the boys like the sand. For them, that was what was important. We did have a great view of the historic bridge from the beach.

On our return to our camp, I got a campfire going and wrote in the journal a little bit, then we went to bed. I was pretty tired.

Although the campground is not right next to the highway, we still got road noise in the distance. We were also close to an airport where planes would be flying over the campground. But overall it was pretty peaceful here.

March 20, 2018 – Tuesday

We woke up to a beautiful morning with blue skies, and 36 deg.

We went for our morning walk to check out some of the area. We discovered the campground (tents only) that was closed for the winter, and explored this nice campground. It had a nice feeling of being in the pine woods, and was pretty good size as for the amount of campsites.

When we got back to camp, I pulled out the stove for cooking and of course for my coffee. Yesterday I just put up the tent. I got a fire going this morning, and using pine it was popping embers all over the place. I couldn’t sit too close to the fire so as not to get hit by the embers.

I thought this area might be good for bird watching, so I put some seed around camp this morning to see what we attract. I noticed crows here, of course, and robins.

With the doubt and uncertainty I am experiencing at night, comes the endless beauty nature provides to us, I am glad I made this choice to be in nature with the boys. There is nothing like waking up each morning, being consumed with natures beauty, in sights, sounds, and smells, that awaken ones senses.

South Beach State Park is one of the most popular state parks in Oregon.

I recognized one of the campers here, that was at Humbug Mountain. They were leaving this morning. Not sure if they were heading out, or just going for resupplies, or sight seeing. When they past our camp, I waved to them in a gesture of “Hello fellow campers, good to see you again.” I never did talk with them, but I still felt a connection there.

Because the tent only campground is closed for the winter, tent campers used the more expensive campsites that has an electrical hookup which is typically more expensive. But if the electrical hookup isn’t used by the tent campers that additional charge is waived. Some campgrounds don’t give campers that choice, and charge them for it whether they use this service or not. We do have a water faucet in our site which is nice, but does not have the drainage rock most campgrounds have. They also don’t have trash cans spread out in different locations, but rather have large dumpsters next to the Visitor Center which is a bit more inconvenient. But then, we don’t have to hear garbage trucks going through the campground for garbage pickup every week. I did locate two dog poop trash container that are helpful so I don’t have to carry around poop bags so far. As for the restrooms, they are nice, with free showers, but there is no parking at the restrooms, and are a distance away. So if you have dogs that can be a problem. Typical rules for dogs are that they are not allowed to be left alone in camp. What this campground did put in that I thought was ingenious, was doggie hitching posts at the restrooms. If you look at it, it usually is not a problem with most campers on some of these things I have mentioned who are here and gone after one or two nights, but as a full timer with two big dogs it can be an inconvenient. But we full timers are a minority for the most part. I tend to get a little bit irritated at times when campgrounds make it more difficult, especially for tent campers. I guess I get picking at times that the parks don’t think through making it more convenient for campers. Especially me, a full time camper? But we are few, and it is what it is, and I just have to deal with it. They also have low profile fire rings I don’t care for. I tend to like the taller ones for safety reasons. Originally I did not like the taller ones because they blocked out a good portion of the fire. If it has a higher base inside the fire ring it is not so bad, and it is easier to start a fire not having to hang over the fire ring. But, I can’t complain too much, it is a very nice campground, and we always seem to make each campsite and campground work for us.

Today I will put up the canopy because we may get some rain coming tonight or tomorrow. We will also go into town for food for the week and to explore a bit of the City of Newport.

Evening Entry

I dropped by the Visitor Center, and found out they have WiFi. I also found a place in South Beach, just outside of the campground where they sell firewood on a honor system. One takes the wood bundles and leaves the money in a box. Each bundle of firewood (six logs in a bundle) sells for $5.00, and $20.00 for five bundles. Not a bad deal. The bundles are held together with rubber strips that makes good fire starting material. South Beach is a small unincorporated community that lies between the campground and Newport. We also checked out the Newport Historical area, and it was jamb packed with people and traffic, so we didn’t stop. Then we headed to Walmart for good prices on propane canisters, and then to Safeway for our food shopping. Newport pretty much had everything we needed.

Back at camp, I put the food away, did some reading, and took a short nap with the boys. After the nap, the boys and I took a walk to the beach. I then fixed the boys and I some fresh frozen Sockeye Salmon for dinner.

We are suppose to get rain all this week, up to Sunday. We may only stay here for a week. The weather forecast indicated nicer weather the following week. Until then, I will have to button up the tent for the rain and possible winds. We will have to see how the weather materializes.

I tied the boys up at the rear of the camp so they have a little more room to run around, and Takota can stand watch for any intruders, human or critters, and Nanook for critters to observe.

We had a busy day today.

March 21, 2018 – Wednesday

While lying in bed in comfort, in my sleeping bag, and over two air mattresses, I was thinking, “stop worrying about the small stuff, and just enjoy the experiences we are having on this wonderful journey we get to experience in nature, day after day, with no end in sight.” I felt a refreshed attitude within.

We got up at 9:00 am with overcast skies, and occasionally feeling a few drops of light rain fall. It was a beautiful morning.

We went on our morning walk, and as always Takota gets tangled up in his leash. I then have to untangle him, over and over again. Nanook learned how to untangle himself at a very young age, just by lifting his leg. It was no big deal. But No, Takota made if difficult. Nanook learned to sit, and shake hands very quickly. Takota’s attitude was, “I don’t do that.”

Back at camp I was getting irritated with little things, like constantly having to untangle the coiled wire cables I used to keep the boys retrained in camp. Being tied up has never bothered them, and I provide a long enough cable for them to move around. The down side of using a long cable is the dogs getting tangled up, as with the coiled cable. The culprit is usually Takota. Takota always has to move around knocking their water bowl over, or getting tangled up. He is a restless bugger, where Nanook usually finds a nice comfortable spot and stays put. He will move to different spots on occasion, but nothing like his brother, Takota.

The rules in most campgrounds is leashes or tie downs cannot be any longer than 6 ft. In length. I stretch that a bit. I have a 30 ft cable, but I make sure it does not extend beyond our campsite boundaries. Few campgrounds enforce these rules, and many campers usually don’t adhere to these rules. Many campers will use the retractable leashes which I think are bad, because the owners will allow their dogs to go into other people’s camps, and from my observations, the owners never keep a close eye on their pets or the control of their pets. These type of leashes provide little control over their pets compared to the 6 foot length. When we are outside our campsite, the boys are always on a 6 ft. leash, and they have their leashes on in the truck, so I have complete control over them when I put them in and take them out of the truck. I then attach them to the cable immediately.

I can understand why campers let their dogs loose in camp. One is because of them getting tangled up. And another reason is, that they think it is okay to let them run around in camp which is not okay, because most dogs will wander outside of camp, or approach other dogs passing by. Another issue is dogs chasing after wildlife. Dogs need to be restrained at all time in a campsite, campground or areas where they are required to be on leash. But there are those who feel they do not need to follow these rules. They do not think about other campers they may impact. As best we can, we have to be considerate campers with all other campers.

We are getting a little sprinkle of rain in camp, so I retreated under the canopy. I prefer being outside in nature as much as I can, even with it raining, so I can experience nature. That is why a canopy is so nice to have. Unless it is a down pour or the winds are blowing. I will use natural wind breaks when I can to protect us from the wind. The boys have learned to use the vegetation, and trees for protection from the wind or rain. They also use the picnic table for cover from the rain.

A Steller’s jay came to visit us this morning. He was squawking a bit, and looking around, then flew off. So far that I know, no birds have been attracted by the bird seed in our camp yet. I did spot the elusive bird with the rust colored underside, flying from tree to tree.

This morning I started a campfire and wanted to see how that rubber strip from the wood bundles worked as a fire starter. And it worked well as expected. A good fire starter for emergencies. I will put some in my fire starter bag.

I have a nice fire going to start the cool morning out. Since I am under the canopy, I can’t enjoy the fire for warmth, only for the crackling of the wood and the ambience it provides.

The boys are starting to howl when a dog or dogs walk by our camp. Takota will first start barking, then prances around, showing he means business, then he starts howling, and Nanook will follow with howls. Takota typically starts to howl first, and then Nanook starts in most of their howling situations. I think they were telling the dogs passing to stay away from our camp. When they howl, I feel I am experiencing the call of the wild. They started howling at an early age, and I always encouraged them to howl. I thought I could use that as a communication with them and me.

I am not sure what our plans will be today.

Evening Entry

Most of the morning were light showers, it then got progressively more consistent and heavier in the afternoon. In the evening we were getting a mix of light to heavy rain.

This morning I was going over the Washington State map for options to camp in the mid to eastern part of the state. Not many options that I could see. I didn’t want to drive the coast line of Washington and deal with more rain and wind. I figured it would be dryer to the east. I wanted to cut through the Columbia Gorge, to camp and see the gorge, and also to get to the Washington side. There was only one State Park Campground on the Oregon side in the gorge. And they require reservations after the first night, and I don’t do reservations. I wanted to stay at this campground for just a week with the schedule I am trying to keep, but I do like this campground, and our campsite a lot. I think it will get harder getting campsites when the weather begins getting better, and more people getting out into the great outdoors. And of course, many campgrounds will require reservations.

I will go to Walmart at some point to try and get a pad for my driver seat. It is really getting uncomfortable to drive long distances.

I would like to cross the Canadian border by the beginning of May. The thoughts of driving through Canada brings some uncertainty, but also a lot of excitement in the beauty we will see, in the remoteness that we will experience in the Boreal forest, and the wildness that will be all around us, and in the smells, and freshness of the forest filling the air.

On our way to the store for some food, I stopped by the Big 5, to check out the good sale they were having on air mattresses. I never know how long the air mattress I just bought would last, and it would be nice to have a backup. It is always nice to have backups. I also dropped by the GMC dealership to take care of a recall I have on my truck for an air bag replacement. The guy in the service department would check on the part to be replaced. He then told me the recall was put on hold for my truck.

March 22, 2018 – Thursday

It rained all night with a light rain and little occasional wind.

When we got up to go for our walk, it was mostly overcast, broken. A light shower fell during our walk that felt refreshing touching my skin, and the air smelling fresh. We found a nice trail through the woods that took us around the closed campground, then we finished our walk through the closed campground.

It is always hard telling what the weather will be from moment to moment. By experiencing these changes, they can be filled with wonder, or filled with dread. I try to focus just on the beauty and wonders nature brings to us. We were getting blue skies and Sun, then in a flash, it was clouding up again. I did start a fire when we had that brief moment of clearing skies. An occasional breeze would come through our camp.

Our tent did well with the rain we had during the night, although it was just a light rain.

The Steller’s jay came into camp enjoying the bird seed. I also saw juncos in another campsite this morning. Occasionally ground squirrels can be seen scampering around looking for food. One was running through the bushes in our camps.

The rain has begun once again with the wind being the indicator. This will probably go on all day, through Friday, and maybe Saturday. Any blue skies that was here is now darkened by the gray rain clouds. Once I mention blue skies, the rain stopped and the blue skies reappeared like magic.

The burning of the firewood smells good in the morning air. Being in nature are truly magical experiences to behold when we can let go of out thoughts and just be in the moment.

This is the second time I burned a slug that was on the firewood. I have to stop doing that. This very act with a creature of the Earth, no matter how insignificant we may think it is, shows no respect for nature itself. All life has a role on our planet, that is part of the web of life. All life should be respected. It is the small things and large things that we do that can impact the whole scheme of life. By showing respect for all life, nature smiles upon us. When we don’t, nature cries for the loss. Asking, “why am I doing this to my relations?” I am always learning with nature being my home.

A robin that I saw foraging on the ground, brought back a memory I had when I was young. We had some kind of a red berry bush the robins loved to eat. We saw them on the grass in my front yard listening to the earth, then pulling out a worm for a meal. My friend and I were sitting on the porch one day, and my friend said, “They are listening for worms.” I had never thought about that until my friend made that comment. And I still remember that to this day. One evening not long ago, I heard a robin perched high on the tip of a tree, singing a beautiful song, and it gave me a greater appreciation for this beautiful bird for what they share to those who are listening, and in the beauty they bring to the world. Then one day, the robins and hawks began to disappear from our area. Was it the DDT that was being sprayed or something else? And if it was DDT, how did it effect us, the human? At that time, we thought DDT was a miracle solution for ridding us of insects. We were not aware, or even thinking about the impact it was having.

If it wasn’t for Rachel Carson’s brave warnings about poisoning our planet with insecticides, much more harm would have been done to all life. She opened our eyes to these toxins that impacted all life, even human life.

Evening Entry

I talked with a volunteer at the Visitor Center, and we were discussing the high nightly rates where the campgrounds had electrical hookups at all the campsite. This campground did not charge tent campers if they did not use the electrical hookup. But there are some campgrounds that do. Why is that? It does not seem fair, and it is not fair, or right. I pay $21.00 per night here. It would be $31.00 per night if they charged for having the electrical hookup, whether you used it or not. I was referring to the Oregon State Parks. But I found this to vary from State Parks in other states as well.

The gal I was talking with also mentioned Spring Break starts this weekend, and I should stay here because it will be very busy at the campgrounds. Especially the more popular campgrounds like this one.

We are suppose to get some rain through Saturday, and Sunny weather starting on Sunday through to next Saturday. I also confirmed with the nice Park Ranger if I can keep my campsite for another week? He checked the reservations and said, “I was good for another week.” So I paid to hold my campsite. We will be staying for another seven days from this Sunday. The ranger also told me directions on how to bypass most of Portland, and cutting my drive about an hour in getting to the Columbia Gorge. Things are looking better with some of my concerns I had about the Spring Break rush, and the weather. Hopefully the weather will be kind to us for our departure day.

In the afternoon we went to shop for dinner, got some gasoline in the truck, got a new air mattress, and a butt cushion at Walmart. I also found a guy selling firewood in Newport, and bought about a weeks worth of fir firewood.

Going across the high bridge to get to Newport we hit very strong wind gusts, shifting my canoe from side to side, that was also effecting my truck. I saw a tarp I had in the bed of the truck fly out and hoping it wouldn’t cause an accident on the bridge. Luckily a police officer wasn’t around. I am sure I would have gotten a ticket, for sure.

On our way back from Newport and before crossing the bridge, I tightened the lines, and straps from the truck to the canoe. But I still got some front movement of the canoe going back and forth over the bridge. Pretty scary going over the bridge in those high winds.

I was getting concerned if the canopy and tent was still up with these winds. When we got back to the campground the winds didn’t seem so bad. I then saw a new camper with a canopy and tent flapping all over the place. When we reached our camp, the wind wasn’t effecting our camp much, but it did begin to blow a bit more in our camp, so I secured the guy lines on the tent. I would always recommend completely closing up and securing the tent, just to be prepared for unexpected weather, and especially when leaving camp. The weather looked like we could get a down pour any time. The rain never came, and the clouds were replaced with blue skies.

The new firewood we got didn’t want to start up to well. It felt a little wet. Once I got some hot coals under the wood, the fire got going. I got a good price for about a weeks worth of wood and figuring I would have a fire in the mornings and evenings, weather permitting.

Today, we had a productive day getting things done in town. Especially getting a good load of firewood. It is always nice having a good stack of firewood in camp.

If we do get nicer weather all next week, it will be the first since being in Oregon.

Before going to bed, I wanted to see if there was good access to the internet at the Visitor

Center. There was, so I checked Facebook, deleted emails, and checked weather. The forecast now says rain on Sunday. I am glad I extended our stay here. It is suppose to be nice up to the following Wednesday after our departure day on the following Monday. But maybe not. The weather always changes as does the winds blow.

March 23, 2018 – Friday

It rained off and on all through the night. We got up at 8:45 am. My mind was still foggy from the dream I was having. I was also doing some writing in my head last night, thinking I will write it down in the morning, and as always when I think about putting on paper, it becomes a blank sheet. For me to remember these occurrences, I have to write them down when they come to me. Sometimes I do, and most of the time I don’t. I knew a nice walk in nature would clear this fog in my head, and it did. Once this head fog had lifted, I began remembering what thoughts were running through my head in the middle of the night. I also find in my writing, if I write it down, it doesn’t mean when I rewrite it down, that it will be the same. Sometimes I don’t even look at what I wrote down in my notes. Funny thing how that happens.

It was a nice walk, the rain had stopped while we were strolling through the park. This park has nice trails, short, but nice. Especially when we walk them alone.

Back at camp from our walk, the temperature reading says 47 deg. It feels much colder with the dampness in the air, and with the wind blowing.

The first thought I had was having a fire. And 15 minutes before that it was hailing.

Overall the sky was overcast with some blue sky peaking out between the gray sky.

Because of the wind, I don’t think I will be going into Newport today for food. I have food for the boys, and I will order a take out at the Crab Shack in South Beach just a few minutes from camp, for my dinner. I haven’t had a good sea food meal for a long time. I have salad in camp I can have, if I am still hungry.

I was thinking how nice the good weather will be for a full week, and maybe longer.

I may have mentioned this on this series of blogs already, but one of the reasons I wanted to do this journey with my canine companions was because I had a real concern about the impacts climate change will have on our planet, and to the natural world. For a long time I have observed how most of the modern day world had very little or no respect for our “living” planet. We used her for our own selfish reasons, benefits, and thrills. And never had the gratitude of giving back to her, or in a simple prayer of thanks, for all she has giving us – in the many life sustaining benefits she provides to us. We take, and give nothing back in return, but destruction of this sacred life force. We pollute and poison the air we breathed, the water we drink, and the land we grow our food from. We have lost that connection with nature that has given so much.

I wanted to experience that deep personal relationship with the natural world before it was too late. Jumping forward about 4 years, I made the decision to get out of nature, in the lifestyle we were living, because it was getting too dangerous, and as for other reasons. The devastating impacts of Climate Change was upon us. We did not have to wait until 2050. And the continuing devastating changes on our planet can be seen all around the world, impacting all life forms. And it will continue to worsen.

I did not come close to all the things I wanted to accomplish on this journey, but I was lucky enough to experience a small piece of it, and our relationship and connection, and the oneness to all life.

The dream I had was about a woman I met back in the 90s. She was a beautiful soul. She lived in South Dakota, and I in California. We talked on the phone everyday. We talked about books we had read, and the stories that brought meaning to both of us. With those talks I began experiencing a shift in awareness towards a spiritual direction. A place I thought I would never go or even had any interest in moving towards. She did not consider herself religious or spiritual, but I felt she was a spiritual guide that was there to guide me on my spiritual path. She send me a book by the late Dr. Wayne W. Dyer titled, “Your Sacred Self – Making the Decision to Be Free.” We talked a lot about Wayne Dyer. She would see him when he was in town on lectures. I had read his first couple of book years before, but knew little about his transformation he had experienced. I read this book she sent me, this book was “Your Sacred Self,” and I began experiencing a major transformation to the spiritual. Was this woman that came into my life an angel, a spirit guide, unknowingly showing me to the sacred? To a place I never knew existed.

On this spiritual path I found myself on, it wasn’t like I was looking for it, or I needed it, or it was pushed upon me – it was like experiencing a welcoming gentle breeze running through me and deep within me.

In the morning I wrote in the journal, and did some writing in a note book afterwards.

Evening Entry

I went to the Visitor Center and asked if they would let me charge my laptop there? And they were obliging to do so. I checked the weather and of course it changed once again. More rain is expected tomorrow. Today it sprinkled or rained most of the day today, as with being a cold day.

I did a little reading today, and sat by the fire to get warm in between the rain showers.

I picked up my laptop from the Visitor Center, then went to South Beach to pick up some dinner at the Crab Shack, then brought it back to camp. After dinner the boys and I went on our evening walk. We had a light rain during our walk, and came back to camp, wet.

The campground was filling up quickly for the weekend. I am glad we reserved another week here.

After our walk I just wanted to get out of the rain and cold. I was wet and the boys were very wet. We slipped into the dry tent at about 6:30 pm. Also the new weather forecast was for more rain for next week. I really wonder if the weather forecasters really know what they are forecasting. Maybe they should say, “Nice weather is expected, but it can always change, so don’t count on it.”

March 24, 2028 – Saturday

We rose from our slumber and greeted each other with a good morning to a new day with hugs and kisses. I love my boys and I am very grateful to have them with me. We got up at 8:30 am, the temperature was 36 deg. The rain took a break. Half the night we had no rain, then half the night til morning a light rain fell.

We took our morning walk, the rain didn’t start until mid point on our walk with a light rain. It was on and off, but mostly on. Back at camp I wanted to start a fire to warm up, but it was pointless with it raining. We did have a nice walk and discovered a new trail.

The campground got pretty busy last night with people coming in. Both campsites next to us were occupied. On one side they had an elaborate tarp set up over the picnic table, but nothing else, as far as a tent goes. I suspect more people will come in today.

My air mattress is getting flatter and flatter. I think it is time to replace it with the new one I just bought.

Right now I am having my coffee, and writing in the journal. The boys had their breakfast and are now relaxing. There are dogs that are always doers, mine are relaxers. They enjoy their walks, and exploring, but they also like just being in camp with me.

A towhee dropped by camp yesterday to check out the bird seed situation, but stayed in the shrubs. This morning he returned and was enjoying the bird seed. Another bird came in and I am guessing it was the female. Also a junco joined in on the feast. I guess the word is finally getting around that there is food at this camp. We will see who comes tomorrow. The crows are dropping by, but I think they are after the dog food more than the bird seed. Why not go for the big stuff rather than the small stuff?

Afternoon Entry

We went shopping for food in Newport, checked weather, and checked Facebook. I have been on Facebook since 2007, and many Facebook friends are following us, so I like to check in with them and let them know our updates, and share any short writings I have done.

When we returned to camp, a recreation trailer moved in next to us, the people were already gone doing something when we got into camp.

A stream of trailers were coming into the campground for a one day camping experience. I could not really see the point of camping just for one or two days. But most people do. And at one time, I was one of them. Unfortunately many come into nature I believe for the wrong reason. And it is not to commune with nature for the most part on a deeper level. To connect deeply with the natural world, away from our busy non-stop lives in our modern world. We have become machines, always grinding away for a better life that usually never comes. We only have the present moment, and nature can teach us that there is much more to life then the life we have chosen in the material world, then our culture has chosen for us. We live in a matrix where the powerful controls us, but gives the illusion that we are in control.

It amazes me how the word gets out among the bird community everywhere we go when they found a good source of food. There were about 20 juncos in camp and a few towhee. I bet there will be more tomorrow coming to feed.

It was raining oh so lightly, so I decided to get a fire going for the evening. It was a beautiful night, with no rain, and very pleasant out. The campground was quiet overall for being so crowded.

March 25, 2018 – Sunday

I was looking forward to a nice non-rain day today, and it started out with off and on showers.

We went for our walk I notice a lot of rain puddles, and my parking area is getting partially flooded. It was a nice walk although we were getting a bit wet. When we returned from our walk, I didn’t see any birds around. I spread some more bird seed around camp, while the birds were waiting in the bushes. They still remained in their hiding place – then all at once they came out to feed. The Steller’s jay also arrived. It is such a pure joy to see our bird friends visit us in camp. And now we have two jays visiting.

The campground is pretty much full with mostly people bringing their homes away from home. There maybe only about 10 tent campers here, including me.

So far in the Oregon State Parks, I have seen nothing about the history of the native peoples here before the white settlers had arrived, and during recent times. In our modern world, they have become the forgotten people, like so many indigenous peoples in the world. California State Parks seemed to do much better than Oregon in that respect. A lot better.

The family camping on the other side of us, came back to their camp after crabbing. They caught two crabs. A bit later one of the guys dropped by our camp and offered us some crab. It was hard to refuse this kind offer, but I think they had five in their family, and I didn’t want to take what little they had. I thanked him for the kind offering anyway.

March 26, 2018 – Monday

Yesterday turned out to be a pretty nice day as far as very little rain. This morning was another story. It began raining lightly in the morning around 6:00 am. We stayed in bed until it stopped at about 9:00 am. On our morning walk, it started out with no rain, then a light rain, then steady rain showers getting me and the boys soaking wet. But as always, it was a nice walk in the rain.

I seemed to be sleeping pretty well in a half deflated air mattress as long as I don’t move much. If I move around it feels like being in a water bed half full.

It seemed quite a few campers left yesterday with others coming to take their place.

Some college students set up camp next to the right of us. At least 6 of them, both girls and guys. They left after setting up their camp for a hike probably to the beach. It was quiet with our new neighbors gone, and even the whole campground seemed peaceful. I was expecting the teenagers next door to be noisy when they returned. I reflected on all the times I was disrespectful to others. It is just part of being young with a sense of freedom and independence. But during these times though with this freedom, we tend to get out of control.

When they got back to camp they were a bit loud and with a lot of laughter, but they were not out of control. Probably because they were not drinking alcohol. They kept the noise down during the evening, and I was able to have a peaceful night sleep.

While I was at the Hospitality Office (I was calling it the Visitor Center), I was checking on the weather , and asking the employees (volunteers) why there wasn’t anything in their pamphlets about Native Americans in this region? They didn’t have an answer to my question. This tells me that few people think about the very people who once lived here, and who still lives here, but who are invisible to us.

The gal I was talking with said that one of the Camp Hosts here is a Native American elder, and he is fully involved with his tribe. He might be able to give me some insight on the native people here. I remember seeing him and I knew where his trailer was. So I immediately drove over to his trailer to talk with him. I was excited about having a conversation with the elder. I knocked on his door, when he answered I introduced myself and asked him if he would mind talking with me about his people. He immediately responded with, “I don’t know anything.” I knew he just didn’t want to talk with me. I mentioned that the gal at the Hospitality Office told me you might be able to help me? He replied once again, “I don’t know anything.” I knew he did, but just didn’t want to talk with me. So I ran over to the Hospitality Office, and told the gal, “He wouldn’t talk with me!” She was surprised, because he openly told them stories about his people. I was hoping maybe she would talk to him, telling him I had good intentions, but nothing ever transpired. I was a bit disappointing, I was hoping to connect with him on a very personal level. But I also know, few Native Americans trust white people. I should have given him some tobacco as an offering. Maybe he would have reconsidered having a chat. I was sorry that I did not have the opportunity to talk with him. From that point on I gave up on trying to talk with, or connect with the Native people. If it happens it will happen.

Our bird friends, the juncos, towhees, and jays were filling up on the bird seed this morning. It amazes me how well birds do in cold, wet, and windy weather. I am sure the bird seed helps in their fat stores.

I would like to get a fire going this morning, but not sure if the rains are going to come back. The rains started again with a light rain for about a half hour. After the rain stopped, the birds returned for a second helping. A chipmunk partook in the bird seed buffet as well. Nanook has an eye on him. Takota couldn’t care less.

Yesterday Nanook was lying down next to a huckleberry bush where a chipmunk usually came out in the open to feed. He came from another area and ran right by Nanook’s nose. Nanook was relaxing when this little critter disturbed his rest time. Nanook realized what had happened and spent about a half hour sniffing out that critter. I wish I could have gotten on video of this. The thing with photographing or video taping wildlife, one always has to be ready for it. Professional photographers or videographers usually finds a good spot where there is wildlife activity and they wait, and hopefully being able to capture something special. I didn’t think about trying to photograph or film wildlife with two big dogs around. I can do it with birds, in camp but they are quick and most of my shots end up blurred on Automatic mode. I haven’t figured out how to set the shutter speed on my camera.

We had a late breakfast in between the rain showers. I didn’t do much, did a little reading and checked the internet. And just enjoying being out in nature. This lifestyle seems to be suiting us just fine.

It is almost 1:00 pm and still raining and cold. We are watching that chipmunk for entertainment.

Evening Entry

The one chipmunk turned out being two. For being such small creatures, they are awfully brave around people. I was walking back from my peeing spot, and a chipmunk was about two feet away from my feet. It seemed not to be bothered by me being so close. Then about 30 seconds later it scampered back into the brush. They are obviously not bothered by the boys either.

A light rain fell most of the day today, and more expected for tomorrow. So far this evening is pretty pleasant out. I can enjoy sitting out under the night sky. Our tent seems to be doing fine, with no leaks.

March 27, 2018 – Tuesday

It is warming up. It is about 45 degrees when we got up. And at 10:00 am the temperature rose to 50 deg. It still feels cold with the moisture in the air, and the wind blowing. Most of the night the skies were clear and the stars shining bright. At some point it started to cloud up and some moisture fell.

On our walk, we didn’t get rained on. I was noticing all the plant life all around the area. The moss on the ground, and on the trees, the lichen hanging from the tree branches, the mushrooms, the many plants, and ferns, and of course, the trees. It was a moment of gratitude.

Even with the cooler weather we have been having, the boys are beginning to blow their inner coat out that began around a month ago.

The forecast today is suppose to be rain showers. This morning we will have a fire before the rains start to celebrate nature and all that she gives to all life.

I have been having more fires then I thought and my firewood supply was getting depleted quickly. I have about 26 logs in the bed of the truck, and 14 in the wood pile next to the fire ring. That should get me about 6 more fires. We will be here for 5 more nights.

Last night before getting ready for bed, I noticed my air mattress was as flat as a pancake. I added air to the mattress, but I was not sure how long it would stay inflated. I was pleasantly surprised it stayed inflated all night. Go figure?

We are getting a light sprinkling right now.

Today we need to go shopping for some food.

The birds seem to be eating all the bird feed, and I am sure the chipmunks might be helping. I will have to put more down. I haven’t seen them feed this morning. They could have come to feed before we got up this morning or during our walk.

According to the last weather forecast I looked at, it is suppose to get nicer for at least for four days. We are leaving in five days. So I hope we get good weather on our long drive to our next camp on Sunday. I also hope the butt cushion I bought helps in my driving comfort.

The chipmunks are getting very bold in getting very close to the boys. The boys are just watching them as they scamper around.

March 28, 2018 – Wednesday

With this lifestyle, it can be easy losing track of time. For a minute I thought it was Thursday.

I slept pretty well last night. My blanket and sleeping bag did get wet from the window I had open next to my bed. It was overcast all night, but no rain.

We got up at 8:30 am with blue skies, and partly cloudy.

Yesterday was overcast all day, but really didn’t get much rain. A little in the morning, and a very light rain in the evening.

This morning the boys and I took a different trail, that took us along the jetty. Five minutes into the walk on the Jetty, I was experiencing a sharp pain in the back of my knee. I wasn’t sure if I could walk any further. We continued on our walk with that pain coming and going. Once I was getting warmed up the pain lessened and finally stopped. On very rare occasions I have experienced this pain. But never figured out the cause. At my age, and with our lifestyle things like this get me a bit concerned, and hope it is a short term thing, and nothing serious. I have to stay healthy and strong on this journey. There is no one else to help us.

Today we are going to stay in camp. I have to start thinking about the planning of our trip through Canada, and Alaska.

Evening Entry

On our evening walk we just walked along the road in the campground. A truck driving in the opposite direction of us, slowed and stopped next to us. It was a guy alone. He rolled down his window and asked me if the boys were malamutes? I told him they were Native American Indian Dogs. He said, “Beautiful dogs.” He smiled, and waved while he drove off. I didn’t think much of this encounter and walked on. I then stopped unexpectedly, turned around to see if he was camping near by. I saw him pull into a campsite only a few campsites away from us. A thought came to me, “Maybe he would like to meet the boys?” I had no idea where that came from. We turned around and we started walking towards his camp.

Yesterday, I received a post from a friend saying that I must be meeting a lot of interesting people? I replied back to her that I was not interested in meeting new people. I was not doing this journey to meet new people. It was about being in nature alone with Takota, and Nanook. I was trying to make a strong point that I really just wanted to be alone. I realized later when I wrote this, that it really didn’t make much sense. As a supposed writer, this whole experience we were having was also about other people stories, and not just mine. And much later, I realized I was missing out on other parts of our story by closing the door on other peoples stories. But I kept the door partially closed to focus on the experiences we were having in nature.

Maybe my friend’s comment on meeting people was there to awaken me to a larger experience beyond me, but was also part of me. Maybe this brief experience I had, this inner intuitive voice that was telling me to turn around and talk to this person, in this brief encounter, was for a reason?

When we reach this stranger’s camp, he was getting his camp set up. I asked him, if he wanted to meet the boys. Takota and Nanook seemed excited to meet this stranger. And I thought it would only be a quick meeting. He walked over slowly to us. All this guy’s focus was turned towards the boys. The boys and this stranger greeted each other. He knelt to the ground to be at the same level as the boys, giving them gentle pets. Takota was being a little shy and unsure as he always is at first, being a little stand of offish when meeting new people, and Nanook went right up to him, and began licking his face continuously. He told me his Malamute had died, and I could tell he still felt this deep pain in his heart of the loss of his best friend. I asked him when he had lost his dog? He told me it was eight years ago. I had mentioned, my loss of Shiloh back in 2011, and his spirit was always with me. I noticed his emotions rising to the surface with tears slowly beginning to flow uncontrollably from his eyes. It was hard for me in holding my tears back, while thinking of the loss of Shiloh, and feeling for his loss. It was easy to relate to what he was experiencing in these moments.

We walked over to the picnic table, and Nanook stood by his side as he sat down on the bench, as Nanook continued licking his face. Takota sat next to me. He told me his story about how his dog had died. He was coming back from the VA hospital from having surgery for a shoulder injury. It took most of the day with the surgery, picking up pain medication, and the long drive back to his home, where his dog always waits for him on the front porch. He was looking forward to seeing his companion after that long time being away. But there was no usual greeting by his best friend and life long companion, no wagging his tail, or dancing with excitement, no talking with him as Malamutes do, but was just lying there motionless on the front porch. His heart dropped with concern because he knew this wasn’t good. His beloved friend was gone. He held his dog close in deep grief. While he told this story, Nanook was licking his face and the uncontrollable tears flowing down. I was thinking, he must have felt so much guilt leaving his companion for so long. I know I would have if it happened to me. This guilt isn’t really warranted, but we humans tend to feel this guilt for the loss of a loved one.

He then got up, came over to me, and shook my hand tightly, like he didn’t want to let go. And thanked me for sharing the boys company with him. He told me his tears were of joy in getting to meet and spend a little time with Takota and Nanook, I have never seen Nanook do this before.

In writing this, much later in a blog, I can feel and remember how profound this experience was to me, and with the boys. This opened me up in giving myself, and the boys more experiences in meeting new people and dog friends on our journey. That experience was truly a gift for me to have, and experience those moments in making a difference in another persons life. And listening to other people’s stories.

The boys always gets a lot of attention from others, but they got to give to another person in a very special way. It also opened my eyes to these special moments. Moments it seems I was suppose to experience.

It is 12:15 pm, the temperature is 56 deg. It feels very warm and comfortable with a nice breeze coming through camp. The campground is still quite full.

Afternoon Entry

I took a well needed shower to day. I just had to figure out what to do the the boys. I could hitch them up to the hitching post next to the showers, or park in a campsite that was not used, or leave them in camp? I did decided to leave them in camp and they were fine. Luckily no unleashed dogs strayed into our camp. I should have put them in the truck.

As always, it was an amazing experience taking a warm shower. It revitalized me.

March 29, 2018 – Thursday

I slept well last night, though at times I got a bit cold, colder then it was the night before.

Nanook came to get some loving attention from me, and I told him to lie down, and he assumed that meant climbing on top of me in the bed. I don’t mind, but he can be a bit heavy being on top of me. And he obviously doesn’t mind. Nanook weighs about 120 pounds. I give him loving scratches while he relaxes on me and the bed.

There were two robins landing on top of the two pine trees next me. They were perched at the very top branch of the trees and began singing their morning songs. They appeared as Christmas ornaments at the tops of the trees. A minute later a crow flew next to them and landed on a thin limb, attempting to stay balanced on it. The two robins wanted no part of this crow interrupting their songs, and flew off.

At 8:30 am we got up and it was 40 deg. We had a blue sky to wake up to.

Last night was the second night we have had the window coverings open since we have been here. It is nice to wake up to the rising Sun, looking out into nature from all the windows from my bed. I haven’t been able to do this much since we have been in Oregon due to the rains.

On our morning walk, we took a different trail to the jetty. I brought my camera with me to get some photos of the bridge, but the lighting wasn’t that good. Maybe we will try it another time. I had no problem with the pain in the back of the knee as I had yesterday.

March 30, 2018 – Friday

I slept well last night, but a little restless in the beginning. The boys and I got up a bit past 8:00 am. We went for a short walk and just enjoying being out in nature.

At 9:15 am it was overcast and 48 degrees on our walk. The boys were on the scent of a critter, with their noses to the ground. Takota was really focused on the scent. It took them to some bushes, while I was dragged along behind them. It was probably chipmunks.

I was surprised with all the campers and children around, the campground was pretty quiet. It also may be the spot we are camped at. With all the vegetation we have around us, it may help in blocking the noise.

Last night we met a nice couple from Alaska, and they gave us some pointers about Alaska that was helpful.

After my coffee I removed the stakes from the guy lines of the tent, and took down the canopy. We then went to do my laundry in Newport, and I picked up a Smart phone at Walmart. We also did some grocery shopping.

Afternoon Entry

I finally bought a Smart phone. Mike, our camping friend kept telling me I needed to get one. And I really resisted. I see how people use them, and I didn’t want to be one of those people. I soon realized it would be a good tool for our journey. That is if I have cell service?

All day it was overcast with a cool breeze blowing. At around 5:00 pm the skies began clearing. Back at camp I was able to relax a bit and enjoy the rest of the day, and away from the chaotic day I was having. I was told we are suppose to have a blue moon tonight.

Our new friend we talked with yesterday had left. I am glad the boys were able to help him by just giving him unconditional love. And I was happy I got to experience it as well.

Some campers left today and others came in. I am sure we will have a full campground this weekend.

March 31, 2018 – Saturday

We got up around 8:45 am, skies overcast, but nice, and no rain. It is 49 deg.

Our departure day for our next camp is this Sunday. I will miss our camp here.

A guy I saw whacking away at a log yesterday with a hatchet, that could be heard from my camp, we saw today still trying to split wood with a lot of effort and energy. I felt inclined to tell him about the splitter I was using that worked much better than a hatchet and much safer. I hear people whacking at wood echoing across the campground, and thinking there is a better way. The splitter I use is a “Kindling Cracker,” I wouldn’t leave home without it.

Today I will pick up some food in town, fill the truck’s tank with fuel, and start packing up. I figure it will take the usual 2 hours to pack up camp tomorrow.

Our bird friends came to visit us today. We will miss them.

Afternoon Entry

I checked the weather for this area and the area we are traveling to tomorrow, and rain is possible in the PM, for both areas. So it looks like we will have to extend our stay here for another day.

Today turned out to be a beautiful day with clear blue skies and a nice breeze. This afternoon we are just going to relax and enjoy the rest of the day in nature.

April 1, 2018 – Sunday

I slept well during the night. Only a few rain drops were heard hitting the tent roof, so I got up and closed the window flaps. The splattering of rain drops didn’t last long. They stopped as quickly as they started. It was 7:00 am. The weather is supposed to be overcast with off and on showers throughout the day I suspect. Not a good moving day. Since I did not have to get up to get everything ready for our move, I climbed back into my warm, comfortable bed for a few more winks.

As always the boys slept peacefully. Occasionally I would hear them reposition themselves in their beds. It seems I was alway aware to their movements. Once in a while, one of them would wake me up to let me know they needed to go out. Usually without a sound they would stand next to me or at the foot of my bed just looking at me, and I some how always felt their presence. I had three beds for them, two were at the opposite end to where I was, the other one was next to me. They would change off and on who was going to sleep next to me. I felt a deeper connection with them. A much deeper bonding to them, in always being with them.

We finally got up and went for our walk. It was a nice overcast morning.

I got a nice fire going and sipping on my hot coffee while enjoying the morning in nature. I fed the boys already. Since I took my canopy down, we had no protection from the rain when it comes. I hope tomorrow will be a better day for moving camp.

While I was enjoying the sunny afternoon yesterday, I forgot to put the boys beds outside to dry. I will have to put them in the bed of the truck when we leave, to air dry.

We should see a lot of campers leaving today.

I was talking with the couple next to us who were originally from Idaho and the guy was giving me some helpful hints on dealing with moose. Rutting season is always the most danger with many of the large critter, like moose, buffalo, and elk. He told me moose have very poor eye sight, so if one stays still when seeing a bull moose near, stand still, and hide behind a tree or tall brush. It also depends I suppose in how close one is when encountering a moose. Having two big dogs, or any dogs, can make it more challenging. One should always be alert to one’s surroundings. But even with that, there is no guarantee for a close encounter with a potentially dangerous animal.

Afternoon Entry

We went shopping for additional supplies, and food for tonight. Walmart had good prices for propane canisters for my stove, so I picked up four of them at $3.99 per bottle. Each bottle usually lasts about three days cooking both breakfast and dinner. I also bought 27 packages Mountain House freeze dried meals. They were also at a very good price at $8.99 per package. They are not the healthiest foods to eat, but makes good emergency rations. Mountain House brands are the best tasting that I have found, and they also have the highest salt content, as with GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) in all their foods. But are very low in sugars (refined), yet high in carbs (sugars).

The weather forecast is suppose to be good weather, but with high winds for Monday.

It began raining around 2:00 pm, and looks like it could continue on most of the night. We are sitting it out in the tent during the rain.

April 2, 2018 – Monday

We stayed in the tent all afternoon and evening yesterday due to the rain. I was hoping to get some things done, but the weather can quickly put a damper on those plans. This morning it was sprinkling on and off. During the night we didn’t get much rain. It was quite windy though.

We got up at 7:15 am, and it was hard telling if we would get rain or not.

The boys and I went on our walk, and on our return to camp, I noticed everything was quite wet in camp from the day and evening rains yesterday. I also found a leak in the tent. The very tent we bought only three weeks ago. I have to search for the receipt from Fred Meyers, and see if they have another one in stock.

April 3, 2018 – Tuesday

I got everything packed up by 10:15 am. We dropped by the Hospitality Center to get the phone number for Fred Meyers, and called to see if they had another Columbia #8 tent in stock. They had one, and had them put it on hold for us. I will pick it up on our way out of town.

I was able to extent our stay here for one more night due to the weather.

We were on the road to our next camp, Memaloose State Park on the Oregon side of the Columbia Gorge.

Crossing the Yaquina Bay Bridge, it was extremely windy. It was a white knuckles crossing the bridge with the trailer. The wind was pushing us all over the place. It felt like we were in a wind tunnel. I took it very slow and praying we would make it over the bridge safely.

We picked up the tent at Fred Meyers, and then on our 41/2 hour drive to our next camp.

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 9

Part Nine – Our journey in nature continues

March 11, 2018 – Sunday – Humbug Mountain State Park, Oregon.

Last night the coastal fog rolled in completely obscuring the ocean and beach with a layer of thick fog. A very fine mist hangs over the campground. I was hoping to keep all the windows uncovered, but everything was getting all wet inside the tent so I closed up the tent, leaving only cracks in the window openings for ventilation.

The night temperature was comfortable.

I had constant thoughts, I would wake up late, where I would not wake up early enough to meet my time schedule to leave this camp, and move onto our next camp. We did get up at 7:30 am, took the boys for a walk and began packing camp up. I began packing up at 9:00 am after having my coffee and making the boys their breakfast. There was still fog hanging along the shoreline.

I was a bit concerned if I would find a campsite at Humbug Mountain State Park. The girls next to me, two sites over from me, told me it was spring break and I envisioned the campgrounds could be packed with partying youth. This campground was nearly full. I had no idea what to expect at Humbug.

It took me 3 hours to pack up, I was hoping for 2-1/2 hours. We departed at 12:15 pm, and figured a drive of an hour to get to our next camp.

It was hard leaving Columbia #10 behind, it was a good tent for 3 months. We will see how Columbia #8 will do. As long as we didn’t any wind, #10 was a breeze putting up and taking down. With all the large windows it had, it gave us a great view of the outside, giving a feeling of being outside, a sense of openness to nature.

Once again, we hit very little traffic along Hwy 101, the Oregon Coast Highway heading north which is always nice. Nice as in no traffic, and enjoying the spectacular beauty of the coastline drive. It was just me and the boys and the endless stretch of the Pacific Ocean and the rugged land mass called Oregon. We encountered a little road work, but it did not slow us up much. I was relaxed, yet I had a little anxiety about finding a campsite at Humbug.

When we arrived at Humbug Mountain State Park, I spotted the Host and told her what we were looking for, and she pointed me in the ask right direction. We circled the short loop not seeing any campsites suitable for us. There was only one camper here, in a trailer. We slowly drove past each campsite, checking if it was doable or not. Most were not. I am finding that many campgrounds are now designed for the RV’er and not for the tent camper. I found a couple sites as possibilities, then the last site we hit at the end of the loop, Site #23, seemed like we found the perfect site.

Close to the campsite, we had water, garbage, and the restrooms. The site gave us a lot of sunlight in the afternoon. It is a small site but enough to get our truck and trailer into, a good spot for the tent, we had a nice cover of trees surrounding three sides of our camp, giving us good privacy, and a small stream next to us where we can enjoy the soothing sounds of the babbling brook. I hear a lot of bird activity here. Although we are very close to the highway, I anticipate very little traffic noise, if any.

It is 5:30 pm now, with only about an hour of daylight left, so I better get a move on in getting the new tent set up. Our new tent #8 went up with no problem, but it is not as nice as #10. It is an 8’ x 10’ vs. a 10’ x 15’ we were used to. It doesn’t seem that it has the quality or the stability #10 had. The window were also smaller. But it will do, and it will be easier finding a site for it. It is a bit faster putting up, about 20 minutes faster.

The boys seem to be very comfortable with our new site. They seem to be liking this Nomadic life style I have chosen for us.

I am really liking this campsite with lots of trees around us. It has a coziness to it.

It is 6:00 pm and the Sun is going down below the tree line.

The boys where checking the tent out. Nanook really didn’t care. Takota can be a bit more particular to changes in his sleeping quarters. I put the boys beds out in what we had left of the warmth and sunlight to dry out. I was concerned a little of the beds getting mold on them. I will have to watch for that. If they do, they have to be tossed, and replaced, spending more money. The boy’s beds dried out nicely.

After getting the tent up, we went into town for some food. The town was Port Orford to the north of us and only five miles from camp. Port Orford is a small, artistic fishing town. I also checked up on where we can pick up firewood. I asked one of the store employees if she knew where I could get some fire, and she told me, “talk with our butcher, he sell it.” I looked over to the meat counter and this guy was looking at me, I asked the checker, “You mean that guy?” She said, “Yes.” I walked over to the butcher to talk with him, and found he had good prices for firewood. I told him “I will pick some up tomorrow if that is okay?” I picked up a few things for dinner, then headed back to camp.

From what we have seen of Oregon, it has the most spectacular coastlines, and beaches.

I forgot to mention, the campground was only $17.00 per night, which was a good price. I paid for 5 days stay.

March 12, 2018 – Monday

Our first night here, I slept okay. I am dealing with being on two different slopes where my bed is. If even with slight slopes, it can effect ones sleeping.

The temperature is 48 deg. and we are beginning to get high cloud cover that is covering what blue sky we had. It is a beautiful morning none the less. I can feel our new tent having much less space, even feeling a bit cramped compared to #10. It feels like I am sleeping in a VW van. It even kinda looks like one without the wheels. The windows on this tent are a lot smaller that are obstructing our view looking outside into nature.

We are getting traffic noise at the campground from the highway. This is where most campgrounds were built unfortunately. For some who like being in a quiet place in nature, to hear, and experience nature, it is an annoyance to say the least. This campground would be even nicer if we did not have this traffic noise.

I took the boys on our morning walk and I thought we would walk to the beach where we have direct access to from the campground. From our campground we went through another camping area that was closed for the winter months, then a trail that took us under the highway bridge, and to the beach on the other side. It was a pleasant walk until Takota began being rambunctious in the sand, making it hard holding on to two dogs, so we turned back. Luckily we did. I heard some noise behind us and looked back and saw two boxers running off leash behind us with no owner in sight. I yelled out to the unseen owner of the dogs to get his dogs on leash! An old chap appeared and got his dogs leashed up. I increase our pace to further our distance from them. Luckily the dogs did not chase after the boys. We could have had a big dog fight taking place with four strong dogs. Now, dogs are suppose to be on leash on the beach, but the Host told me if the beach is empty we can have them unleashed. The beach is part of the state park. And as people will be, some will unleash their dogs anyway, leash law or not. So for us, the beach is now off limits unfortunately.

This was a new camper with the two boxers that arrived last night. Four other campers arrived later that night. One of the campers was a biker from New York on his way back home. He looked young, a school teacher that taught science in middle school. He was a nice friendly guy. I shared with him about my experiences tour biking to Canada.

We were lucky getting to the campground when we did, and finding the site we were in. I am finding, a lot of campers get into the campgrounds late. That makes it good for us.

The campground gave a feel of being in the mountains, yet only about a half mile from the Pacific Ocean. We are in a small valley between two mountains. The mountain on the west side is Humbug Mountain.

This morning I heard the beautiful songs of a lot of birds singing. One was a Steller’s jay, the many others I could not recognized. It is nice to hear the voices, and songs of the birds. I also heard a Western screech owl this morning with it’s fast paced hoots. They are always a welcoming sound in the woods.

On our morning walk, I found two ticks on Takota. Those little critters are never welcomed, but alerts me to keep a careful watch for them. No one cares for these critter, especially me. Once I went on a long days ride with a group of people on our horses. When we got back I found these creepy crawler on me, and a friend began grooming me of these nasty critters. I had about 25 of them on me. All that I know of is that they were around the neck and head. I was even wearing a cowboy hat that did not seem to deter them. But without the head protection, it could have been much worse. I must have brushed along side a shrub with those buggers just waiting to hitch a ride, or them dropping out of trees. We are also having big flies coming to camp for a free meal.

The jays have discovered our camp for a free meal of the boy’s kibble. Eyeing it for any chance to grab some. We have four of them checking things out.

At 11:30 am it is beginning to cloud up pretty good. I think it is time to put up the canopy today.

Evening Entry

Today is a typical day we have been having weather wise. It clouds up looking like a chance of rain, maybe a few drops of rain falling, then the blue sky appears again. Back and forth, off and on, like someone was flicking a light switch back and forth. Just a few minutes ago we got a light rain shower for about 10 minutes, then the sky was a mixture of clouds and blue sky, with the reddish glow in the clouds of the setting Sun. Most of the clouds have that dark look of rain.

My day consisted of putting the canopy up, doing some shopping, dropped by an Art gallery, going to the library for Wi-Fi to check on the weather forecast, and check on Facebook. Met Richard, the butcher to pick up some firewood. I met him at his house and the firewood was laying in his front yard. He said it was a mix of oak and myrtlewood. I got a good price for the wood.

I started a campfire this evening and both woods burned well. The myrtlewood didn’t smell that good. I had a nice fire going with a heap of wood burning.

It has been a beautiful day and evening and with little rain.

If my site is not reserved for the weekend, We may stay until Sunday, or longer, depending on the weather.

While taking the boys out for our evening walk, I have noticed it is starting to get warmer. Nicer weather is always good, but it can also be bad because it will bring more people out to camp.

March 13, 2018 – Tuesday

It rained all night and the wind was blowing. It seems the wind comes through the campground pretty good. Our new tent, #8 was leaking a little, and a new tent shouldn’t be leaking. This has me a bit concerned. It may have been linking due to the wind. I was also hoping the tent would stay up with the wind we were getting. I will see how it does this week. Now I didn’t have the guy lines attached, so that could have been the problem as well. Maybe it was my fault and not the tents. One reason I don’t stake the guy lines is because I always trip over them, or the boys get caught up in them (mostly Takota). But, lesson learned.

We just had a strong gust of wind come through our camp, and always the rain follows. The wind must be funneling through the canyon we are in. My trailer may help a bit as a wind block. Watching the tent with this blast of wind, it didn’t move much. But anchoring the rain fly with the guy lines is a good idea to stabilize the tent, as with helping to keep the rain out.

I talked with the Ranger at their office here at the campground. The ranger gave me a printout of the weather, and some suggestions where to camp. He also told me our campsite is reserved for Monday. So we will leave on Sunday or Monday depending on the weather. I paid for two more days to get us to Sunday. The weather forecast after Sunday is rain, rain, and more rain through March 26th. But that can always change. I will have to plan for our next campground.

Today looks like one of those off and on days of rain.

Evening Entry

The rain never materialized today, but we have had a lot of strong wind. Along the coast, it was high winds. Overall it was a beautiful day.

We went to the grocery store then to the library to check on the weather forecast and it doesn’t look much better, the weather looks good for Sunday and Monday so far. The weather, and having to leave camp at a certain day, can be a bit nerve racking. The last thing I want to do is leave in bad weather, and having to take down camp in rain and setting up camp in rain and wind.

I did see two robins in the campground.

I began planning for our next campground.

March 14, 2018 – Wednesday

We woke up to clear blue skies at 40 deg. I took the boys for their morning walk. When we got back I got a fire roaring, but keeping it small. I got coffee done, and breakfast going for the boys and I. The fire took a little help getting going in these wet conditions, and I did use some white gas as a starter. Usually a No, No, in my book, but on occasion it doesn’t hurt in wet conditions and being respectful, and very careful using this fuel. And to be truthful, I was being lazy. I had enough materials to get a fire going in any condition – it just took more time and effort in the process. I must have been in a hurry, but careful.

I just noticed my chair is ripping, so soon I need to replace it. I can’t have an uncomfortable chair while I write, or in observing nature, or napping.

I slept well last night and me and the boys got up at 8:20 am.

It rained a little last night and the new tent kept us dry, as far as I could see.

I looked out toward the creek next to camp and the myrtel trees that grow along side the creek. Prisms of sparkling light from the droplets on the leaves, being reflected by the morning sunlight, and hanging from the tips of the leaves, they twinkle so brightly like the stars in the night sky. I cannot say I have ever seen such beauty before.

In our camp we also have some fir and Sitka spruce.

Every morning the birds are chirping away, many hidden among the tree branches or in the thick brush. Sometimes I am lucky enough to see them burst into flight. They are so quick, with such grace in flight, and being able to weave through the branches with ease.

The campground was busy last night with new campers in their RV’s, and trailers. Three have left this morning. For many campers in the winter, it is only a stop over to rest, then continue their journey onward. Only to see glimpses of the beauty that is all around them. There are only a few who really see and hear the beauty in nature. We have forgotten how to just stop, look, and listen. The simplest things like the dead leaves on the ground creates such beautiful patterns, or the water droplets hanging on a leaf. We forget how nature can give our senses amazing experiences of awe and wonder.

I feel in nature how wonderful are your sounds, how fragrant are the smells, how sweet the air, and how pleasing are the sights we perceive. What an amazing place to be, bringing me back to the Source of all life.

After breakfast we will run to the grocery store, and library to check weather conditions, then back to camp to charge batteries.

Afternoon Entry

The weather changed to more of a chance of rain on Sunday, a 60% chance. But that could change as well. The weather is never static. It is always changing. So we may have to leave on Monday. I will have to continue checking on the weather.

At the grocery store we got some food, and a bundle of firewood for kindling. Coming back to camp, I aired out the trailer and the tent. I wasn’t sure how weather tight the trailer was, and it is doing well. We are suppose to get rain on Thursday so we will make that laundry days. I also got my batteries out on my laptop, and iPad to charge.

It is a beautiful day today with Sunshine, a gentle ocean breeze, and peaceful. I also picked up a movie to watch for this evening.

Evening Entry

We are getting some overcast skies this evening, and it looks like rain might be approaching from the ocean. I will have to button up the tent and cover anything outside needing to be covered with tarps. The rain may come in, in the middle of the night.

March 15, 2018 – Thursday

I slept okay, but had to get up around midnight to close the window covers because of rain. The wind blew some, and it rained lightly off and on through the night.

We got up at 8:45 am, and went for our morning walk through the campground. The air was cold and damp from the rain during the night. The rain refrained on our walk, then started up again once we got back to camp. It was a light, but steady rain. We will see what the weather does. We may do laundry today.

On our morning walk I was watching a large beautiful hawk. Not sure if it was a red-tailed hawk. It doesn’t matter, it was beautiful no matter what it was.

March 16, 2018 – Friday

Since it rained all day yesterday, I didn’t feel like doing laundry. We will do it today.

It rained all night til 8:30 am this morning. There were a lot of birds chattering away at around 7:00 am, where we had a small break in the rain. I wonder if the creatures mind the rain, or they just respond to it as just what is.

I decided not to cook breakfast this morning due to the rain, and it getting late. But a fire sounded good. I wanted to use the wood up or most of it, before we leave for our new camp. The fire was having a difficult time going in the wet environment. It seemed to be going good one minute, then not so good the next. When it seemed to be going out, I gave it some good steady blows, and that did the job. Then it went back to smoldering again. The wood was just to wet. I continue in my persistence, feeding it more kindling, blowing some more, babying it more. I have been using a log base to keep the fire from soaking up the moisture from the wet ground. This is a must do in wet or snowy weather. It is a good trick to get a fire going. But the base logs obviously need to be dry. After the fire got some good coals heated up, the fire was going good.

With all the rain we had, yesterday and last night, the tent seems to be doing pretty well, as far as keeping us dry inside.

The coals are the heat source that makes a good fire. I did a test on that when a friend, me, and Shiloh were camping for a few days. My friend got to camp early, and when I drove up, I asked where the fire was at? He said he couldn’t get one going. I have been there before. But with practice, and knowledge, I had enough confidence in fire starting when everything was wet, and I was able to get a fire going. Most of the weather was off and on rain. We were running out of any type of dry wood, so I gather punk wood and placing it over the hot coals. And soon the wet wood would burst into flame. I then put really wet punk wood on the fire, and it did the same thing, bursting into flame when it got hot enough. Fire starting takes patients in wet conditions, as well as using proper dry materials and techniques.

I forgot to mention, on Wednesday we had a good amount of sunshine, and I was able to get a good charge on my batteries. The solar works great as long as we have the Sun. These panels by Goalzero provides an indicator on what the Sun’s collecting power is on the panels.

Enough said, I think me and the boys will relax. I will enjoy the nice fire, do a bit of reading, and finishing my coffee up, then get going on the laundry. It is really nice being able to have a pleasant fire.

Evening Entry

I got my laundry done, dinner for tonight, a movie, and checked Facebook. Then read a little bit back at camp. Then the boys and I took a walk on the old 101 highway that ran through a part of the park. We checked out the small falls by this once old two lane highway. The road was narrow and over grown with vegetation making it more of a small abandoned single lane country road then a highway. On our walk I thought I spotted a Red shouldered hawk.

During our evening walk I may have seen a king fisher flying about.

It rained and showered off and on throughout the day. From camp I could see blue skies over the ocean with the Sun’s slow decent moving towards the horizon. There was a rain cloud hovering over us at our camp. For most of the afternoon we were experiencing very light rain showers falling on the campground. I was watching it fall against the setting Sun, and barely could feel it where I was next to the fire and under a myrtlewood tree. It was a beautiful experience watching and feeling the gentle tiny droplets falling from the sky, and the fine mist touching the exposed skin of my face. It was so refreshing.

There was a group of Boy Scouts that took up four campsites. I hope they are quiet.

March 17, 2018 – Saturday

It looks like we may have a full house this weekend at Humbug campground.

During the night I had thoughts of doubt about what we would be enduring in the Alaska’s long harsh winters that took up most of the year. In dealing with a place to stay in a tent, with the cost of food, and being able to get around in a two wheel drive truck. The whole romance living in nature in wild Alaska thing was always a distance dream of mine, but is it possible at my age, and doing it in a tent? In having really no idea what I was really getting myself into? The planning it would take for survival in the winters. I am sure people in Alaska would think this hombre was off his rocker, a little loose in the head.

My early morning closed with a nice dream that I cannot share here.

We got up around 8:30 am, took a walk, then back at camp to get a fire going, coffee brewing, and breakfast for me and the boys. I saw a lot of blue sky with scattered clouds. The temperature was cool. But soon began to cloud up again. It is time to take a nice warm shower today.

Today we will go into town to check on weather and pick up something for dinner.

For all the campers here and with the boy scouts, it was pretty quiet surprisingly. People don’t know what they are missing, when they learn to be silent, and listen to the sounds of nature. We are a very noisy culture in the US. I remember in my early days, as soon as I got home, I would turn on the TV to fill the silence with noise.

The movie I watched last night was the making of the movie, “Winnie The Pooh.” I don’t have any idea why I got that movie, but I really enjoyed it. I did not realize the impact the book had in the world. The impact it had on children.

If Takota can’t be in the tent, he lays next to it. My beautiful boy.

March 18, 2018 – Sunday

It was a chilly 39 deg. this morning with clear blue skies.

I had the window flaps open, something I hadn’t done for a while due to the rain. And again, it was nice looking out into the beauty of nature being so near to us. Looking out and seeing the trees was an uplifting experience for me, a spiritual experience, always giving me a sense of calm within.

We took our morning walk and it seemed even the plants and trees felt the warming sunlight.

We usually take our walks through the closed portion of the campground. It is peaceful there when no one is around, but us. This morning, even the traffic noise from the highway was quiet at times. This stillness was very welcoming. It was nice experiencing silence on this peaceful morn.

The birds are squawking away, and the boy scouts packing up to leave their short experience in nature. The Humbug campground will soon be almost empty again of campers.

I hear the song “North to Alaska,” playing in my head, and seeing the movie in my mind that I have seen many times. It was one of my favorite movies, as with Hatari, another John Wayne movie.

Last night on our evening walk to the close portion of the campground, I spotted something in a grassy area. I couldn’t tell if it was an animal or something left by a human. The light was quickly dimming from the absence of sunlight. We got closer and I thought it might be that hawk we have been seeing, but it was not feeding on anything I could see. It was just laying there. I thought maybe it was injured. Still getting closer for a better look, it rose to it’s feet, and flew off to a nearby tree branch. It was a hawk, but the species unknown. I did notice it had a white chest.

The plans I had during this journey were always hampered by the bad weather, so I would spend my time reading.

My hair and beard was getting longer and much shaggier, fitting the look of a mountain man, or a homeless person. With my hair and beard both gray, I looked like an old elder of sorts.

I had enough firewood for this evening, but I will pick up two bundles at the store, and two bundles of kindling. I will begin to pack up today, and getting the boys beds aired out and drying outside. We should have a good day as far as weather for our move on Monday. Although this place was nice, I am looking forward to moving on. It will be about a 3 hour drive to arrive at South Beach State Park, Newport, Oregon. It is 151.5 miles to South Beach State Park from Humbug State Park. I want to try and leave by 10:30 am tomorrow.

Afternoon Entry

It is 4:18 pm, and it is pretty much overcast. Tomorrow we are suppose to get nice weather here, and lots of rain forecast for where we are going. I would usually hold off leaving here, but I want to get going, and hopefully we will get good weather to set up camp when we arrive at South Beach S.P.

March 19, 2018 – Monday

Our day started out well with clear skies, at 38 deg.

The boys and I went for our morning walk. Back at camp I fed the boys, and I began packing things up, while the boys rested for the long drive. For me, I try to keep my driving time to about three to three and a half hours, keeping in mind once I find a campsite I have to set up camp again, and if shopping is near, I will go to the store to pick up some dinner. Breaking camp, driving time, then setting up our new camp. I am usually pretty tired. So I want to give myself enough time to get the things done that I need to get done before dark at our next camp. We departed Humbug S.P. at 10:30 am.

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 8

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part Eight

February 26, 2018 – Monday – Harris Beach State Park, Brookings, Oregon

With hail and rain all night, I was anticipating more of the same in the morning. But we got a break in the weather early morning. When we finally got up at 7:45 am, the skies were clear, with a temperature of 38 deg. I was going to postpone our departure one more day, but might as well take advantage of the good weather.

We headed to Trinidad to get the truck filled up with gas, and a large cup of coffee for me to get my blood following me. Then back to camp to start breaking down camp.

The packing up went smoothly. It took the typical 2 to 21/2 hours to get everything packed up, and the trailer hitched to the truck. We departed at 11:15 am. I figured we would reach our new campground by around 1:30 pm.

I did decide not to go to Prairie Creek Campground, but instead meet Mike and Mr. Dundee at Harris Beach State Park in Brookings, Oregon.

When we were well on our way, heading for a new adventure, I realized I forgot to grab the boys lead lines, and I did not want to turn back to get them. I figured it was time to get them replace, they were getting pretty worn out. Hopefully we can buy a new pair in Brookings.

On our beautiful drive north we saw a small herd of elk grazing along side the road. That was a sight to see. I yelled out to the boys, look, elk! Nanook looked out the window, but did not seem too interested. Takota didn’t care less, he didn’t budge from his hiding place under the seat. In his own way, he was telling me, “Wake me up when we are at our new camp.” The drive was nice, and with very little traffic. I called Mike and told him we were on our way, and to check out the available campsites for us.

We arrived at the campground at around 2:15 pm or so. Mike was waiting for us at the entrance of the campground to show us a couple of campsites. The boys were so excited to see Mike and Dundee, and Dundee was excited to see us.

The campground was right on the ocean, with Sitka Spruce trees covering the area. It looked like it was going to be a great place to camp out. The first camp site Mike showed us I liked, but he told me it had bad drainage and puddling, and I noticed it had very little protection from the wind. It is easy to assume a campsite looks good, until one carefully evaluates it, does it fit our needs? Mike’s comments made it clear it wouldn’t. And in my head, I go through a check list on if the site meets our needs. So that one was taken off the list. The second site Mike showed us looked like it would work for us. It had good wind protection, open for good direct sunlight, a nice grassy area for the tent, pretty good privacy, and surrounded with Sitka Spruce trees. We were also close to the bathrooms. Our cooking area is at the parking level, then dropped a few feet down to our tent pad. There was a very small fire ring, and a picnic table at the upper level. The parking area encroaches a bit into the cooking area. I was able to move the picnic table in a better position for my liking, so I have enough room to put my canopy up. Usually the picnic tables are stationary in most campgrounds. Although the truck and trailer infringes into our main camping area, it gives me easy access to getting things in the truck and trailer. There is always a give and take with these campsites. With the camp layout, I don’t have a good spot to tie the boys. That will have to be figured out. The only option for parking was to park the trailer and truck side by side, and hope we are not asked to move them. The trailer is partially off the pavement and some campgrounds are funny about that type of thing.

I paid for 5 nights, and will see how it goes. I would not stay here much longer, but for having the ocean so close to us. It is nice being close to the ocean once again. We may stay for the two week. I prefer staying a full two weeks when we can, and just settle into an area. To get to know our surroundings, what trees and plants are here, and the wildlife in the area. I don’t like moving camp unless we have to. Each place we camp, seems more like a temporary home.

It was in the 70’s. It felt good to feel the warmth again. The temperature cooled quickly with the setting Sun.

I got the tent set up first thing, then we went into town for some groceries. Not much to say about the town of Brookings. It is like any other town or city. I was expecting a quaint type setting of a fishing village. Unfortunately I didn’t feel that. It did have a Fred Meyers grocery store, a laundromat, and a pretty good pet store. I was able to get wire lead lines for the boys and some treats for them because they are being so good. I also picked up some groceries. I forgot Oregon does not have sales tax which is really a nice surprise when going shopping. Brookings is very close to the campground that is convenient. I try to minimums going into town for shopping to save on gas, the wear and tear on the truck, and time spent away from being in nature. But when it is this close, it is easier going into town more. Because I have a good ice cooler, I can go without going for ice for about five or six days using my insulated ice cooler, (The one I am using is the Cabela’s Polar Cap Equalizer Cooler, 60 Qt.). By using block ice I can store usually five days of perishable foods, reducing my having to go to the store every couple of days. And I have to find a place that carries block ice, that can be challenging. If I can only get crushed ice, it usually has to be replace every two or three days. So I very seldom use crushed ice when I can avoid it. It also saves me time and money, if the grocery store is a close distance away.

I wanted to get back to camp to finish setting it up camp and getting the tent ready for rain and possibly wind that is expected for tonight. I also wanted to get the canopy up.

February 27, 2018 – Tuesday

After almost 4 months in California we finally reached Oregon. This morning we had clear skies, 40 deg., and chilly. It got down into the mid 30s last night. I got a little chilled in the early morning and had to hide my head beneath the sleeping bag.

The boys and I went for our morning walk along the ocean cliffs of the Pacific. Wanting to dispose of two bags of dog waste, I couldn’t find any garbage cans. I thought for a clean state as Oregon is, and especially in a day use area, and by the ocean, they would have trash cans. But they didn’t have any, so I had to carry the waste bags back to the campground. Mike and Dundee’s camp are just above us past the restrooms. The Boys and I can here Dundee barking at their camp and of course the boys get all excited when hearing Dundee bark.

One would think the only thing we would hear next to the ocean are crashing waves. But that was not the case, there was construction going on at the campground, and on the highway which we were very close to. It sounded like there was highway construction work going on all night, as with the usual traffic noise on the highway.

Although I can’t see the ocean from camp, I can sense the smell of the ocean breezes, and hear the crashing of the waves.

Evening Entry

I got everything done that I wanted to get done today. I got the guy lines staked on the tent, the canopy up, the firewood out of the truck and stacked to dry, went to the store for more food. I also got some reading done, and meditated. It was a warm 65 degrees today.

When we went into town, only a mile away it felt much colder with a wind chill in the air. And when we got back to camp, it was felt warmer.

At 4:00 pm we met Mike and Dundee at the beach. Dundee was off leash. I kept the boys on leash. I did not want to take any chances of the boys going after any other dogs. It is hard telling what dogs they don’t like and what dogs they do, thus I cannot take any chances. It would be nice if they got along with other dogs, but unfortunately that is the way it is. It does create limitations on what we can do in nature, but they do give back so much more in just being with them. On the upside, they do love people. Once the boys felt the sand on their feet they got all excited, and began wildly playing with each other, and yanking me every which way.

I thought the beach might be cold, but it felt very comfortable with six layers of upper clothing on me.

The evening is very pleasant before the rains come sometime tonight. It will be interesting how much rain we will get at our new camp.

The drying of the firewood must have helped, because we had a nice tiny fire in our very tiny fire ring this evening.

The night sky is pretty bright from the moon light and lighting up our surroundings. It is nice walking the boys at night without a flashlight.

February 28, 2018 – Wednesday

The rain I was anticipating last night didn’t start until around 5:00 am or so the next morning, and it was a very light rain. We got up at 9:30 am and no rain was falling. But we would soon find the rain was intermittent this morning. I am glad we have the tent on grass so we don’t have to deal with tracking mud in the tent. Our living/cooking area was a mix of grass, rock, and a little dirt. The boys have the protection of the canopy, or under the picnic table from getting wet from the rain. Now, Takota at times just enjoys laying in the rain. Our wind break seems to be doing its job so far. We are getting an introduction of the weather here, and what will soon come in the next few days.

I usually prefer having a good size camp, but as long a we have good privacy from other campsites, I feel good in small camps. Each campsite brings it’s own personality and feel to it. They are never the same. Once we get to a campground, we usually do a drive around to check out the sites. Then pick out possibilities that could work for us. And hopefully choose the best one. It can take a few go arounds. And I will also get out sometimes to do a walk around. This is why I always make a point to get to campgrounds on a Sunday or Monday when most campgrounds empty out. Unless it is a three day weekend, then we will leave for a new campground on Monday, or Tuesday. I found this to be the safest bet on getting a campsite and having a choice of sites, both in winter and summer time. But I know, summer time will be more challenging, with more people camping.

We are allowed 14 days here, so I will add another 5 days, giving us four extra days for changes in weather if needed. Weather is a big determinant in where we go, when we go,and is it safe to go.

We have a little chill in the air from the breeze, but it feels good. And I know the boys love the cold.

Evening Entry

Our Columbia 10 person tent did well until we returned to camp in the afternoon at 3:00 pm. It was raining in the area from about 1:00 pm continuously, and before that, off and on. The boys and I got in the tent to hang out from the rain. Hopefully it would stop before dinner. About an hour later I noticed drops of water forming on the inside of the tent at the roof, and my bedding was wet, as with small puddles on the floor. That was not a good sign. The more I looked, the worse it got. I was thinking with the steady rain we are now getting, and the forecast for more rain tomorrow, we will be underwater if I don’t fix the problem now. I had plenty of tarps with me, and grabbed the ones most handy. I had one at the firewood pile, With some difficulty, I covered half the tent rain fly with that tarp. While doing this I was getting soaked. I got the tarp tied off to the tent frame, and the tent stakes. It was also getting windy, and I hoped the tarp would stay in place. I had no trees to tie it onto. I will then use another tarp for the other half of the tent and will finish it off tomorrow. Unless the other half of the tent started to leak. The tarp I put on seems to be working. Hopefully we get a break from this rain.

Since the rain tonight, it is the second night I have not had dinner. I did feed the boys.

While I was getting propane bottles at Fred Meyers earlier, I checked out the tents, and they did have 6 and 8 person Columbia tents on sale. I thought, “Do I buy another tent, or buy a sealer”? With the weather we are getting, it would be difficult putting a sealer on the large tent rain fly. So the option is to buy a new tent. The tent we have been camping with we have been using for three months. It is probably time for a new tent. It served us well. This will be a continuous problem with tents on this journey. They will wear out much faster with continuous use. The camping tents are not made for this type of use long term. I do have other tents with me, but I don’t want to use them. We will look for a new tent tomorrow.

March 1, 2018 – Thursday

It was raining and the winds blowing all night. It seems we may have a break in the rain and winds this morning, and then they started up again. The rain is on and off. It is 44 deg. It is cold with the winds blowing.

All of my clothes are wet, and I am not prepared in having dry clothing in the ready. They are in the trailer and some are not accessible without digging into the trailer in the rain. This means putting on wet clothing, which is a miserable experience.

My side of the tent with the tarp, is staying dry, the uncovered area where the boys sleep is just a little bit wet. The leaks seem to be coming through the fabric of the rain fly where it is touching the ridge framing of the tent. Which tells me the water proofing of the rain fly is pretty much gone. This tent has been good to us, but it is time for retirement.

My Columbia Fall River 10 tent began failing after 3 months. I was hoping for more use, but these tents are not made for longevity when using them everyday. The zippers begin to fail as well.

The rain was lightening up some, so I decided to get some coffee on. The winds just started blowing which usually means more rain coming.

Because of the rain I have had only coffee, slices of fruit, and slices of ham for meals the past two days. The boys haven’t lacked in what they eat. When I cook breakfast I usually have bacon and eggs, and the boys get a little topping of that on their kibble for taste. When I don’t cook due to weather I will give them a little bit of ham, or roast beef on their kibble. For dinner the same, unless I cook and then they get a little bit of meat or poultry that I cook for myself. They are spoiled in that respect.

I did see some blue sky coming towards us, but that was short lived.

I think soon we will be moving out of this rainy weather with each day that passes, but we could have two more months of it, just not as frequent. We have had very few down pours, just mostly light rain, so it could be worse. Winter camping has it pros and cons, and it can also be a beautiful time being in nature. The time limitations at each campground can be a problem as well if we have to pack up in wet weather. But so far we have been very lucky in that. The weather has cooperated for us on moving days.

While drinking my coffee, watching the wind, and rain coming through camp, we then had the hail come crashing upon us with a loud roar. We may have to hunker down in the tent for a bit.

When we get a break in the weather, if we do get a break in the weather, we will run to the store. This weather is wearing on my peace of mind.

I notice, when I can relax in this crazy weather, I can actually enjoy it. It is when I think to much that causes mental misery and discomfort. It seems that the boys don’t mind.

I haven’t seen much bird life, just the seagulls and crows.

It is 1:00 pm now and the boys and I are still hunkering down in the tent waiting for a break in the weather. More hail and rain is coming down. It is 42 degrees in the tent, and cold. I am getting used to staying in the tent during periods of bad weather. This is why I chose to have a large tent for us.

I am getting impatient being stuck it the tent, so we are going for it, braving the elements.

I did get a tarp on the other end of the tent, so our tent is fully protected from the rain. A puddle was forming on the floor of the tent once again, that we had the previous day.

I called Fred Meyers and put a new tent on hold and will pick it up on Saturday. The new tent will be an 8 person tent, 8’ x 14’. We are currently in a 10 person tent, 10’ x 15’. I figured the smaller tent should work fine for us. I had no plans of putting the new tent up at this camp because it will be lying on a boggy puddle, unless this tent completely fails.

March 2, 2018 – Friday

We are in our first two days of March in Oregon, and three days of wet and cold weather.

This morning at 8:30 am it is 40 deg.

The rain and wind made it difficult to sleep during the night. The pounding of hail and rain are very loud against the tent surface, It was pretty much endless all night.

First thing this morning, we went for our morning walk. It wasn’t raining, but it could anytime. There was some blue sky peeking through the clouds, then quickly vanishing above the next set of rain clouds coming in. The rain did hold off until we finished our walk. During our walk the wind was blowing bringing cold temperatures with it. My hands were freezing holding wet leashes. Once in camp the winds had stopped and felt pleasant at 40 deg.

I just saw a hummingbird flying into camp. I saw it earlier, but did not pay much attention to it because I was talking with Mike.

Looking out towards the ocean I only saw gray skies, although we are suppose to get a break in the weather anytime now. The forecast is more rain today, and through tomorrow, then cloudy on Sunday, Sun and cloudy on Monday, and cloudy for the rest of the week. But that can change as it seems it always does.

Afternoon Entry

The storm that was suppose to clear up to nicer weather never happened, instead we got more overcast skies, and mostly rain all day.

We went into town and found a WiFi at the Starbucks in Fred Meyers and touched bases with our Facebook friends. I did have someone interested in the oil painting I was trying to sell, but because it was hard to find any information on the artist, the person decided not to buy it.

One of the issues camping in wet weather in a tent is staying dry, and if we had a dry tent, which we don’t, and with wet clothing, it makes for a very unpleasant experience. I made the mistake of not having easy access to dry clothing. We could have gone to the laundromat to dry my wet clothes, but didn’t. If we had a heater in the tent, that would have helped keep the moisture content low and much more comfortable, and to dry help dry out my clothing, but I didn’t want to buy a heater just for this occasion. With these temperatures we are having, with being all wet, and with the wind, I could have possibly experience hypothermia, but luckily I didn’t. These are lessons learned. I didn’t see these things as being too serious, so I took a lackadaisical approach. I thought the conditions would get better, but they didn’t as far as the weather, until four days later. I was just miserable.

My plan was to head inland through Oregon to avoid this wet weather, but in talking to Mike, he said the passes are requiring chains for both vehicles and trailers. I had neither. So onward along the coast.

We took a short afternoon walk and right before we got back to camp, it began to rain again. Rain, rain, go away, come back some another day. I have stuff to do, but can’t with this on going rain. Every time we would have to go into the tent because of rain, the rain would follow us inside. The entry to the tent was right into the wind, bringing more rain into the tent.

Time to make another payment for camping, and did another 5 nights.

March 3, 2018 – Saturday

Last night I watched a movie, ate another cold dinner in the tent, and the boys had their dinner in the tent, and more rain.

Other than doing a little shopping yesterday, we stayed in the cold and wet tent most of the day.

It is 40 deg. The wind is blowing off and on, as with the hail and rain. It is never ending. To add to the entertainment we are having with the weather, we had some thunder rumbling nearby. Full of exciting moments here. Other than having to deal directly with the elements in nature, it is beautiful here.

At this moment, the Sun is shining, and in a blink of the eye, it will be gone. It was nice seeing the Sun come out even for a brief moment. It is cold outside with the wind blowing. I miss having a fire to start the morning off, sipping some hot coffee, and just being outside in nature, and breathing in the salty ocean air.

Last night I took the boys for a short walk, it was foggy out, but I was able to see stars out. A welcoming sight. I thought, maybe the rain is over? But soon returning to the tent, climbing into bed, the rain began once again, and pretty much rained all night. I love this experience, and at the same time, I am tired of it. If I didn’t have the boys to keep me company, I would really hate it. I would feel lonely without them. They provide me with a great sense of comfort and companionship.

We woke up to off and on rain. The tent is now leaking at the floor and wall seams. The tarps are still keeping the roof of the tent dry, thus keeping us dry.

I was just talking with Mike at his trailer. The Sun peaked out for a few moments. We were talking about why we are doing this, especially in the winter? And the simple answer is to experience being in nature. I would see things differently if I was still dealing with a leaking tent. I knew from the very beginning it wouldn’t always be a pleasant experience. Like right now, I am cold, my hands are shaking, my feet are cold, but I am living and experiencing nature.

It is hard telling what the weather will bring today. Mike will bring by the weather forecast a bit later.

Today we will pick up our new tent.

Although I feel cold throughout my body, feeling miserable with discomfort, asking myself how long can I do this for? It is part of being and experiencing nature. It could be far worse. In these times, we can always see the beauty in the natural world.

The Pacific Ocean is calm for now.

March 4, 2018 – Sunday

It rained off and on during the night, and this morning.

We didn’t get up until 9:30 am because of the rain. During our morning walk we had a very light rain falling, then back at camp it stopped.

I had a fire this morning for the first time since last Tuesday. It did take some time getting it going since the wood was wet, even covered with a tarp. The fire was going, but struggling, and having to occasionally nurse it back to life by blowing on it.

This morning there are a lot of jays and crows jabbering away. Probably happy the rains are over with for at least a few days.

It is 12:15 pm and we are getting a lot of sunshine that was very welcoming. The weather will be fair through Wednesday, then worsen again on Thursday. We may leave on Wednesday.

On this section of our journey it has been the most challenging so far with the constant rain and a leaking tent, and being cold and wet all the time. The first week was draining with four days of rain, wind and hail at times. Too much rain or wind can drain ones soul, and energy it seems.

When I originally set up the tent on this nice grassy area, I did not realize I was in a slight swell. With all the rain we were getting the water was collecting under the tent in one big puddle maybe two inches deep in parts. Walking in the tent felt like we were walking on a waterbed.

I began getting concerns and doubts that we could even reach Alaska with the funds we have, as with spending a year there. Could we survive?

This campground is used mostly for RV’s and not so much for tent campers especially in the winter. It seems to me the campgrounds are catering more to the RV’ers than the real campers that camp in tents. I am getting used to seeing RV’s in campgrounds because it is now the way it is, but it doesn’t mean I like it. I don’t think they belong in campgrounds, or put them all in one area, and the tents in another.

After the winds roared through the Sitka spruce, and the rains and hail pounding on our tent, where no other sounds could be heard.

Where the seas surf crashes and pounds against the erect rock pillars rising from beneath the oceans bed, like sentries, the protectors of the shoreline and rocky cliffs.

Where the booming thunder announces it’s presence in unbelievable strength and force.

Where the looming dark gray clouds always threatening, gives way once again to the warmth of the Sun’s rays.

And the sea once again begins to calm in her magical grace.

The wind, hail, and rain has finally ceased to exist for now, and the Sun, and blue skies took their place, giving us a refreshed outlook once again, and the calming ocean soothing our souls. A brief experience to behold until the next storm arrives. Where the birds once again rejoice in song as a new morning comes. Even though the cold still air and brisk breezes still remains, reminding us we are still in winter. It is a constant reminder that nature is in control, like the surge of the oceans forces wearing away at the cliffs in nature’s course. It reminds us that nature should always be respected.

Evening Entry

I was getting a little down today, thinking about our money situation, and how far will it takes us in reaching the wild lands of Alaska, meaning “Great Land.”

These prolonged rains has something to do with these dark feelings I am having.

We went to the grocery store to pick up a few things, and to check on Facebook. I received a real nice comment by one Fb friend on my writing that gave me some encouragement, and purpose to continue in my writing. Writing gives me a sense of exploring my inner self, and my deep relationship with nature. I have had others say good things about my writing, yet I still feel the lack of confidence in my writing for the most part.

I see utter chaos, and madness in this external world we live in. A world for the most part that is filled with greed, and materialism. A world the modern day cultures feel separate from. And nature becoming just an after thought. Something for us to use to give us some kind of normalcy in a crazy world, but knowing a place we always have to return to. We never really get close to what nature truly is – a giver of life.

After a decent day of weather, with the Sun’s rays drying my wet boots, the tent beginning to dry out, and the firewood drying, things seem to be getting back to some sort of a normal.

March 5, 2018 – Monday

We woke to blue skies this morning, 38 deg. It should be a beautiful day by the Pacific Ocean.

On our walk this morning we saw a cottontail rabbit, Nanook wanted to invite it over for breakfast.

I checked out the new tent, and it is not a quick set up tent like the last one. It will take a bit longer to put up, and take down. I hope it will be easy to set up alone. As always, the rain fly is always the most difficult, especially with a tall tent, and especially with any wind blowing, even the slightest winds. This is one reason why I try to move on good weather days for both taking the camp down, and it setting up. So far we have been lucky. With the tent we have now, I was able to set the tent up at the half the height, then slip the rain fly on. It was much easier then trying to put it on when the tent was at full height. And with any wind, impossible to do alone.

It is amazing how nice sunny weather can change ones attitude and outlook. After 5 days, we are finally able to cook breakfast. Bacon and eggs are on the menu this morning.

Afternoon Entry

Checking on the weather from weatherman Mike and his sidekick Mr. Dundee, the rains are suppose to be returning on Wednesday. Most of the rain will be during the night. Saturday and Sunday looks pretty good, and maybe on Friday. We are now looking at leaving on Sunday for a new camp.

Most of the things I put outside to dry, dried or almost dried. Two of the boys beds dried, and the other needs a bit more time. Much of the firewood is dry. The tent is drying out as well. I will dry the under side of my air mattress tomorrow, and then more rain is expected.

During my meditation I was reminded to live from my heart and not in my mind. In the mind, we live in fear, living through the heart we live in the present moment.

March 6, 2018 – Tuesday

At first I thought today would be another sunny day, but the cloud cover is slowly moving in. That is okay as long as we don’t get rain. I had the tent windows uncovered last night and it was nice looking out into nature while lying in bed. That is one thing I liked about this tent, it had large windows that opened up to nature.

On our journey I wanted to focus on nature, being present in nature, to write about nature, and also write about the native people that once thrived in the areas we have camped at. Bringing my attention to these things, they brings me in experiencing more of a deep purpose and connection to these. I do wish I could have connected with the native tribes on a more personal level, but it was not to be.

Afternoon Entry

So far it has been a beautiful and warm day in camp.

On our afternoon walk, we met a lady from Finland. She lives here in Brookings. She told me Finland does not receive any snow as it once did, due to climate change. For the most part, most of us in the US, don’t pay attention to the subtle changes that are happening here because we are so out of touch with nature. I began seeing it back in the 90s that things were changing on our planet.

Evening Entry

The sunset was spectacular this evening.

A Steller’s jay flew into camp, and a lot of crows flew by. And for the second time I heard Canadian geese fly by.

Mike had told me the noise I heard on the road, that I thought was road work, was actually from a large lumberyard.

We were going to have chicken tonight, but didn’t feel like cooking, so I just had a cold slice of ham, some roasted macadamia nuts and a protein drink.

It was a beautiful afternoon and early evening with no wind and with a pleasant temperature. At 6:30 pm it began cooling off a little.

I will have to prepare for more wet weather coming soon.

March 7, 2018 – Wednesday

It didn’t get too cold last night in the tent. The temperature read 38 deg. But felt more like in the 40s. This morning is with overcast skies.

We got up and did our regular routine of going on our morning walk, got a fire going, coffee brewing, writing in the journal, and preparing breakfast. From there, we will just let the day come as it may.

Not many animals here, we did see a deer here in the campground this morning.

The cloud cover just opened up to blue sky. It is hard to figure out what the weather is going to do from moment to moment. It is always changing. This weather is as fickle as a woman.

It is nice camping next to the ocean, a nice contrast from wooded areas, although here we have a mix of ocean and the woods. The ocean is a special place, a spiritual place, a healing place. But we are finding this everywhere we go. Everywhere is special in it’s own way, and sharing it’s beauty and magic to those who are aware of it. In indigenous cultures they experienced this, by living in the present moment, and seeing all life as being sacred – even in the simplest things they did. We can learn a lot from these native peoples of the land.

Afternoon Entry

With all the kneeling I do in getting a fire started, especially in the wet weather, I bought a kneeling pad to protect the knees.

More rain is suppose to come in tonight on Thursday, and Friday. Saturday, and Sunday is suppose to be rain free.

The rain started again today at around 3:30 pm with a very light sprinkle.

Evening Entry

Before turning in I just took the boys for a walk, and we got soaking wet in the rain. It wasn’t a down pour, but a steady light rain. It wouldn’t be a big deal if we weren’t living in a tent. Well, it is always a big deal when the boys get wet because it is impossible to get them completely dry with their heavy coats, and It is impossible to keep their beds dry.

It is now 5:40 pm and we are in the tent for an early evening of hunkering down in the tent from the continuous rain. I picked up a movie to watch to preoccupy my time before going to sleep. The nights become very long on these cold and wet winter nights.

We climbed into the tent trying to not get everything all wet. The boys would shake once they got in, defeating my efforts in trying to keep the inside of the tent dry. I would dry the boys off as much as I could in the tent. If the canopy was closer I would give them a partial dry, then finish the drying off when we got into the tent. It seemed to be an endless battle keeping them dry, and keeping me dry.

What some tent manufacturers don’t do is putting an overhang at the entrance, where there is a side entrance, which kind of makes sense to me. It would help in keeping the inside a little dryer. Having a heater inside the tent would help as well, but I don’t feel the need to have one in most cases, nor do I want to spend the money for the few times I would use it.

The way I set up where I put our bedding also depends on the least damage the boys can do to the tent. Takota can be the biggest culprit in possibly damaging the tent with him stretching his claws along the tent skin. This is always a concern of mine, but so far they have done well inside the tent.

While watching the movie, I couldn’t hear much of it because of the rain drowning out the sound with its pounding on the tent. Even with my ear plugs on, it didn’t help much.

The rain eventually stopped, but the wind continued all night.

March 8, 2018 – Thursday

Before we got up each morning, I would always greet the boys with a “good morning,” then they would come over to me with their loving greetings. This was something we always did, and it gave me a sense of deep gratitude for the new day.

When we got up, we went for our walk. It wasn’t raining at the time, but soon started with off and on showers during the walk. We stopped at the kiosk to pay for three more nights. The sky looked very stormy looking, with low gray clouds, and rough seas pounding the shoreline, as with high winds and cold. The weather created a mysterious beauty to it, but I was getting tired of the wet winter weather living in a tent. But I knew it was going to be part of the adventure with no place to hide. I chose this. I chose to experience what nature throws at us, but trying to do it safely. It could be much worse I suppose.

On our walk, a woman stopped us to say Hi to the boys. The woman and her husband were here from Colorado. They would spent two or three days here, she told me. She loved the boys, and she gave them a lot of loving scratches and rubs. The boys took full advantages of these moments. They love their new human friends that they meet on our journey. And they are making a lot of human friends.

Back at camp and while writing in my journal, the rain had stopped, but the cold wind continues on. Because of our wind blocks we are not effected too much with the wind. If we didn’t have this wind block, this time here would be much worse.

I bought quite a few journals for this journey. They have hard covers with rings, making it easier to write in my camp chair, that I call my writing chair. I learned while journaling, just write, and don’t be to concerned about what one writes, or whether it will be used in a book or article.

While writing, two Coast Guard helicopters flew by. I am sure they stay busy with rescues, where people go beyond their boundaries in nature.

A Steller’s jay came by our camp and hung out for a bit, hoping it might get some food from us with his squawking.

Today might be one of those on and off days of rain. The rain would be a bit more tolerable, if we had a good tent we could rely on. I won’t set up our new tent until we are at our new camp.

While the boys and I are camping, you might be thinking, “what do we do all day camping in nature. From day to day it always changes, and as you can see, weather has a big factor in what we do.

Typically once we find a campground (when we camp in campgrounds), I try to find a suitable campsite that works for us. We are usually limited in our choices that works for us, and we just make it work the best we can when we don’t find that perfect campsite we are hoping for. We may not even know it is a good campsite until we settle into it and make it our home for one to two week. I then unhitch the trailer, and start unpacking. The tent is the first thing to always go up. The reason for this is, if bad weather hits, We always have a shelter to protect us. This applies especially in the backcountry, for it is ones only safe haven. but I also apply this in campgrounds. Then once the tent is up, I place our bedding in the tent. I then will usually get the stove set up for my morning coffee and for breakfast. Get my chair out, and if I have firewood, get some out for an evening fire. I never cook on the first night we arrive. I am usually too tired at the end of the day from taking down our camp, driving to another campground, then setting up camp again. If we don’t have any food for dinner, we will pick up a quick meal at the grocery store and any miscellaneous things we may need. Sometimes we may have some food left from our previous camp we can eat. At some point we will go for a walk to check out our new surroundings, and back at camp just relax at our new home, maybe enjoying a nice fire. We usually hit the sack early. I will finish up any small things that makes our camp complete, for the next day. We will go shopping for our week supply of food on our second day. If shopping is close by we may go more often. We do the things we need to get done in camp, and outside of camp. Then for the rest of the time it is the joy of being in nature, to immerse ourselves in nature.

Waking refreshed the next morning, we will go for a walk, then back at camp I will get coffee going, write in my journal, and fix breakfast for me and the boys. We then let the day directs us on what we are going to do. While writing in my journal, I may write relatively short entries, or I may write for the whole morning. My intention is to experience nature fully in each moment. To be fully present in silence.

When we aren’t out running around doing errands, we relax in camp and observe nature in silence. Just watching and listening. There are times I may write, or just read, but mostly quietly observing the beauty and wonders in nature. We may take walks to explore the area we are in. I never experience being bored or lonely. The boys always provides me with good company, and companionship, as does nature. I could not image Takota and Nanook not being part of this experience. Once we reach going into the back country, my routines will be quite different.

Safety is also a factor both for me and the boys. For me, doing everything alone creates a bigger opportunity for injury and possibly in getting sick. So I am always aware of this for me and the boys. We don’t take any undue chances where we may be injured. There is not that other person, to help out.

Doing things in nature usually takes longer then being in the civilized world. Even the simplest things takes longer to do. As they say, we still have to chop wood, and carry water. We are not just camping for the fun of it. My goal is to immerse myself into nature with all my senses – to experience being one with all of nature’s beings – in the plants, the trees, and in the wildlife.

We always focus on keeping a clean camp, from garbage waste, and food, so we don’t entice any critters into our camp. I don’t mind them coming into camp, because I do enjoy listening to them, and watching them, I just don’t want them to think we are a good source for food for them.

I had a difficult time finding firewood here. I found cut wood on the roadside, and found some firewood dumped at a campsite next to ours. I made sure it wasn’t by a camper using the site. But at times, when most are leaving to go home on Sunday, I could find a good source of firewood campers would leave. Usually No wood collecting in State Parks is allowed, unless campers had left it. But for this campground due to the weather, we didn’t have many fires.

It is 12:15 pm and we have not been getting much rain, just a sprinkle or two.

Overall my leaking tent survived without me having to take it down and replacing it with the new one.

The weather outlook is good, for the weekend and for moving to our new camp.

Evening Entry

It looks like and felt like rain was near. So I took the boys for our walk, hoping not to get caught in it. It was still light out, so we walked along the cliffs of the shoreline. It was foggy out with the ocean horizon disappearing into the heavy fog. The ocean had a feel of calmness to her, yet the waves were crashing against the rocks of the shoreline, as if a storm was approaching, or maybe just with the high tide coming in. None the less, the beauty of the ocean was always there. It was a very pleasant and relaxing walk. Back at camp, I could hear the waves crashing on the shore. There is something magical about the ocean with her many moods. It can be so amazingly calm, or so fiercely raging.

Right before we entered camp from our evening walk, I saw a glimpse of a very large bird that flew over our camp. It was only a shadow of a figure in the darkening night sky, and quickly disappeared from sight. It could have been an eagle with it’s large wing span moving silently through the air or maybe an osprey.

It was a nice walk, with the exception of the boys misbehaving in their playfulness, pulling me every which way. It was a nice ending to a nice day.

Once we stepped inside our tent for the night, it started to rain. It was a pleasant light rain. I heard a sound in camp and poked my head out of the tent to investigate. I saw nothing, but felt the light rain falling on me. It was magical.

March 9, 2018 – Friday

The light rains that began when we stepped into the tent, soon turned into a down pour. It rained off and on all night. I don’t mind the rain during the night as long as I have a tent that keeps us dry. And always having hopes of waking to a fresh morning light of the Sun.

This morning as in most we have experienced, we woke to no rain. it was 55 deg. The Sun peeking through the partly cloudy skies with beautiful cloud formations. It was a good morning indeed.

The boys and I took our morning walk. I was getting warm and sweaty, and I didn’t even have a coat on. I am not sure if we will be getting anymore rain today. It would be nice getting everything dried out in the tent today.

This morning I chose not to have a fire this morning. I was getting low on our firewood supply.

We have not seen many birds here during our stay. I did see a hummingbird on our walk this morning. They are always a delight to see. They are amazing masters of flight for being so small.

I didn’t find any leaks in the tent this morning, from the rain last night.

The floor is wet, but no puddles. It is amazing the tent survived the weather for two weeks, although barely.

Yesterday on Facebook a past post I did, popped up. I titled it, “How May I Serve?“ It is a Mantra I use often to remind me how I want to treat other human beings, and nature itself.

When we ask this question, we may receive spiritual guidance for answers to this question.

There may be times we may receive them, but we aren’t listening to them when they come.

For me, this answer came to me almost immediately, an answer that is all too familiar to me. and that is: I may serve through unconditional love, empathy, compassion, understanding, forgiveness, kindness, non-judgement and non-labeling. And not to a selected few, but for all living beings, and even for ourselves. By practicing the above, it will transform our lives in ways that seems impossible. It will remove any anger, fear, or hatred to ourselves and to others. It will truly set us free from within. That is, if we allow ourselves to be guided by these practices. For so many, we have allowed these negative thoughts and feelings to dictate our lives, giving us this idea that we have no control over self. It is who we think we are. That we are separate from the rest. We must remember, we are One with all life – we are connected to all things in form, and in the formless.

This has nothing to do with a religion, but a deep spiritual connection with all life.

When we allow hatred, anger, and judgements into our lives, we move away from the sacred in all things. We become blinded, not being able to see through our ego mind.

I am once again choosing to walk on the sacred path on this journey we find ourselves on. I know that I will see things in a different way, through the wondrous beauty in nature.

Evening Entry

Today ended being a beautiful and sunny day. Tomorrow we have about a 40% chance of rain, and Sunday mostly Sunny.

After getting back from the store, I read for a bit and felt a little guilty about not taking the boys on the beach more, so I got them leased up and walked over to the beach. They were all excited feeling the sand on their feet again. I wished I could have had them off leash, but it is not allowed, and if there were other dogs on the beach, it could have been a problem I did not want to take a chance on. Nanook attempted to do a sand angel rolling happily in the soft sand. Being on the beach and ocean was a beautiful site to see and experience with the boys.

Back at camp I got a fire going, but it was very difficult to get going due to the wood being wet. If I did it properly it would have been easier, but would have taken longer, and I was being too lazy in doing it correctly.

Tomorrow we will get some errands done, then leave for a new camp on Sunday. I am not sure if I will take our leaky old tent with us for backup if we have any issues with our new tent. It is always good to have a backup to be on the safe side.

This morning I had thoughts of getting old and starting late in doing this journey of ours. I wanted to start this much earlier, but it just didn’t work out that way. And it would not have been with Takota and Nanook. I am not doing to bad at this age of 66 years old. At least for now. Old age can slowly creep up on you before you know it.

March 10, 2018 – Saturday

It is 50 degrees out this morning, and overcast. It is hard telling if we will get any rain today. We got no rain during the night.

There was a lot of squeaking from the crows this morning.

It is daylight savings time, giving us a one hour jump ahead according to clock time. Giving us the illusion of a longer day. But we are getting longer days without the time change. It is a great trick to fool the mind, that we are getting more light, and longer days through our clocks time.

I am getting excited in moving to a new camp, with hopefully a new and drier tent, and drier weather hopefully.

Overall the campsite and area was nice, and would have been really good without the rain and the traffic and the wood mill noise we had to endure all night, every night. We didn’t see much wildlife either, that is always a little disappointing.

I decided to leave the old tent I refer to as #10 behind. It has been a good tent for three months.

Each time I move camp, I get a little stressed about finding a camp that will work for us. Especially during sleep time when the unpleasant thoughts and dreams appear. So far we have had good fortune with the weather when we have moved camps. I have never yet, broke down camp, and in setting up camp in the rain or wind. That makes this experience much easier. My Spirits Helpers must be watching over us.

I have been very blessed to be able to do such a journey like this at my age. And experience it with my two canine companions, Takota and Nanook by my side. It has gotten a little stressful and times, but nature always seems to give me the healing I need. As with the boys.

I try to enjoy every moment on this journey, but there are times I feel rushed, like setting up camp and taking down camp, I get in that rush mode that can put me on edge. Not all the time, but most of the time it seems. I do experience most everything else in a stillness. Even enjoying our drives from camp to camp. So far it has been a great journey. My focus is to put all my attention on the experience of being in nature, and having the boys a part of that experience. It is a journey of a lifetime. I wanted to live in nature as long as I can with Takota and the Nanook.

It seemed today was looking like a sunny day today. I will put the boy’s beds out to dry. I looked up to the sky and saw tiny droplets falling from above with the blue sky in the background. The droplets catching the light from the Sun, looking like tiny diamonds in the sky. It is the little things that nature bring to us in magical wonders of beauty.

One thing I have notice so far in the campgrounds in Oregon, is no broken glass. At least not in this one.

Afternoon Entry

In town, I checked the internet, picked up some food, then filled up the gas tank of the truck, and picked up a bag of kibble for the boys. When we returned to camp, I did some reading, and the boys relaxed. I called my sister to ask her some questions, then after the call I took a nice shower.

This weekend is full with campers. The campers next to us had a lab. I told them my dogs didn’t like other dogs. Hopefully they keep their dog restrained. We had a lot of people driving through looking for a campsite.

Tonight the fog rolled in completely obscuring the ocean and beach. A fine mist hung over the campground. I was hoping to keep the windows open tonight in the tent for our last night here, but it we quickly getting wet inside. The outside temperature was comfortable this evening.

March 11, 2018 – Sunday

For some odd reason I was having thoughts during the night that I was going to get up late that would screw up my schedule packing up, and leaving for our next camp. How can I be late? I did get up at 7:30 am, took the boys for a walk, and fed the boys, made my coffee then began packing up camp around 9:30 am. We still had fog along the shoreline.

I was a bit concerned if I would find a campsite at Humbug Mountain State Park. The girls camping two sites over from us told me it was spring break. That might not be a good time to find a new campsite. I had no idea what to expect at Humbug.

It took 3 hours to pack up camp. We departed at 12:15 pm. Much later than I wanted. It would be about an hour drive to Humbug. As always, the boys were always excited in going to another camp. When I told the boys if they wanted to go to another camp, Takota was always excited, running to his brother, telling him, “lets go!” In doggie language. Nanook too got excited.

Our Journey Living In Nature

The Passing of Takota

Takota passed quietly last night near the age of 10 years old. He and his brother, Nanook were a big part of this journey we embarked on for close to five years in nature, living in a tent, full time. I would not have done this journey without both of them. Takota was a friend, and companion to both me and Nanook. He will always be in our hearts, and will always be remembered. He was the camp protector everywhere we traveled. He was a joy to everyone he met. He will be deeply missed.

Good bye my friend until we meet again.

I will continue blogging about, “Our Journey Living In Nature.” I hope you will continue reading our blogs, and sharing them.

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 7

“When we began our journey into nature, I had no idea how long this journey would last. My intent was, as long as I could physically, and mentally endure it, and financially afford it. I had know idea how long that would be. But I do know, each day we get to wake up in nature, and fall asleep in nature, it feels like we are experiencing a beautiful dream of being back home.”

I found this on one of the Picnic Tables and thought it would be nice to leave be.

Part Seven

February 11, 2018 – Sunday – Patrick’s Point State Park, / Sue-meg State Park, CA

On our way north, I was hoping to see the Roosevelt Elk herds that can be seen in particular areas to the north. We drove through an area along Highway 101 and there they were, a small herd of elk grazing along side of the road. And I yelled to the boys, “look, there’s the elk!” Nanook raised his head to see through the open truck window, and Takota continued to hide in his spot underneath the heavy cloth covering in the rear cab. The only times he will pop his head out is sometimes when we stop somewhere, or when we are home at our campsite. He always knows when we get into camp, and even before we reach it, which amazes me.

My Dad and family would always head north after the families camping stay at Robertson Grove State Park to visit friends, and to see the elk. So when we saw the elk, it was a special moment for me. Maybe Dad was with us enjoying them too.

Our drive was pleasant while seeing the elk, driving through the beautiful countryside, the forests of the coastal redwoods, and along the coastline of the Pacific. There was little traffic to speak of. The weather being cool with overcast skies. We pasted through the cities and towns of Eureka, Arcada, McKinleyville, and Trinidad. And five miles further, we arrived at our destinations, Patrick’s Point State Park, that in September 30, 2021 will be changed to Sue-meg State Park. Sue-meg has been used by the Yurok people to describe the area where the State Park is now located. Sue-meg was the name of the traditional fishing camp the Yurok tribe used prior to the settlement of the white settlers. I believe all State Parks should be named in respect for the native peoples who once lived in these areas prior to the settlers as with having the particular tribes having more presents and involvement in the communities and in educating visitors about their traditions, cultures, and about the lands they called their home. Many Americans relate to the Native Americans as a forgotten people that no longer exists, or a few who are making a lot of money in casinos.

For me, I feel the suffering they endured by the white Europeans. I wish I was able to connect with them on our journey, to better understand the struggles they face from the very governments that stole their lands, their way of life, and their freedoms – allowing them to soar the skies like the eagles once again.

My feelings about Indian Casinos are that this solution is the wrong solution. It is a way for the states to collect taxes, and fees, still having control over them, and it can lead to addiction, corruption, crime, and greed. It also separates the tribe from the traditional and assimilated. But then again, I also see it as one of the only ways they are able to survive. For the governments, it is just about the taxes that it brings in.

It was nice seeing the Pacific Ocean again, smelling the fresh salty breeze, hearing the sounds of the gentle surf, and crashing waves, and feeling the oceans magical and healing energy. Originally I wanted to avoid the weather of the coastline, but I am glad we didn’t. It is truly a place of awe and wonder – a place of magic and beauty.

We arrived at the campground at around 12:00 pm. No one was at the main gate kiosk to check in, so we headed for the Camp Hosts trailer while looking at sites available. Stopping at the Hosts site, I asked them what campsite would be good for us with the truck, trailer, a big tent and two big dogs? They told me they thought one spot would work that we might like. He showed us to the site. The campsite was nice, and it was also a bit tight to get into, but we made it in.

It was also a damp site that held moisture within it due to getting very little sunlight to dry it out. It felt like being in a rain forest.

On the way here we were experiencing off and on rain, and at the campground it became off and on light rain. I scoped out where the tent would go and the direction I wanted to have it. I was a little concerned if the rain would stop so I could get the tent set up. When the rained did finally stop, I was able to get the tent set up. Our Helping Spirits were watching over us, getting us here safely, and finding a good campsite. And the weather cooperating with us so I could get camp set up without getting everything all wet in the process.

When I find a site and get the trailer unhitched, let the boys out, and tied up so they can do there thing which is to pee and sniff. They are always excited, and have to do their sniffing everywhere, checking things out, and getting themselves all tangled up in their lines. And then I have to untangled them while trying to set up camp. Yelling at them like they were children, telling them to settle down, and to be good so I can focus in getting my stuff done in setting up camp. They always know that is our campsite now, and Takota goes into his camp protector mode. When Shiloh and I camped, once we got to a camp, he too would immediately go into a protective mode (refer to the blog, “Our Journey Into The Wilderness”), about Shiloh and my experiences, camping together.

I am always in a hurry to get the tent set up, especially with a chance of rain coming in. And during this hectic time, I make sure I pay for the site before we get too settled. The campgrounds makes it clear, once a campsite is taken, it is time to pay. There are those who don’t pay for their sites if they can get away with it.

As I had mentioned, it was a tight squeeze backing up the truck and trailer into the campsite. The road curved at the site and made it difficult to maneuver in a straight line with little space for backing in at the right angle with the truck going one way and the trailer going another way, dealing with vegetation on both sides of me, and with blind spots. With attempt after attempt I could not get a good line up for where I wanted the trailer to go. I had to get out of the truck constantly checking my clearances and getting a visual on the correct path to take. I was beginning to get a bit frustrated with this whole thing. I also did not want to block the roadway from other traffic from getting through. I had very little room to work with. The only way for it to work was to park the trailer and truck side by side, and giving me enough room getting into the trailer and truck. After many attempts I finally get it. I still had to maneuver the truck in and out each time we left the campsite. But it was worth it, we did have a nice site.

When we were coming up to Eureka, we accented a long grade to get there. It reminded me of our bike trip Mike and I took. We met up with another biker who joined us a part of the way. We were riding a close distance together up this grade. I found myself focusing on my peddling, my feet moving around and around, and I began becoming hypnotized with the rotation of my feet with the peddles, and with the wheel sprocket. I fell into a trance like state observing this experience. I found myself moving further away from my fellow companions, yet I did not want to lose being in this zone if just being. When I topped the grade of the accent, I waited for my companions to catch up. The first thing Mike said, “Man you were book’in!” I told him, “I did not know where it came from, but hope I could do it again.” That was the only time I was able to experience that. It reminded me when I jogged, every once in a great while I would go into a zone of joggling where it was effortless. I felt like I was floating above the ground. I could have jogged for miles. I could never figure out what I did differently, it just happened. Out of all the years I had been jogging, I had only experienced this maybe three times.

Once we got settled in a bit at our new campsite, we drove to the kiosk and paid for seven days. This is our forth campground on our journey, with many more ahead of us.

I thought the campground was fairly busy for this time of year. I thought in the winter it would be far less busy. But it was pretty quiet overall.

We are suppose to get nice weather for the week. The campground is in a beautiful area consisting of just a few redwoods, The main trees are Sitka spruce, red alder, the Douglas fir, western hemlock, and the lodgepole pine. Between the 1870s to the 1920s the forest in this area was cleared and burned for apple orchards, hay and potato crops. The land was also used for grazing sheep and cattle. Eventually the area soon began growing back to it’s natural beauty prior to the acquisition as a state park in 1929.

Once I got the tent set up, we headed south to Arcada to some places I might get firewood that I saw on the way up. They were both closed. I then looked for a Safeway to pick up some food, but instead found a market that worked just as well. I talked with a lady there and she gave me directions to Safeway.

I bought three bundles of firewood at the market and picked up a few items of food. I thought I would come back on Monday to pick up more firewood, and go shopping at Safeway.

It was much cooler here with all the moisture in the air, but it felt good.

This afternoon, and evening I found myself with little patience with the boys, and with myself. I was on a short fuse when things did not go my way. I was in a rush mode to get things done, and as a result my patience grew thin. A great day turned into me being in a pissy mood. It will soon pass, but I hate being this way.

I was told there are bear visiting the park on occasional, and mountain lion, so I have to be aware of any signs I might see.

I am not sure what the weather will bring, I will keep all the window and door flaps open. I did put the rain fly on. The reasons I like to keep the windows uncovered is to keep the boys comfortable, they like the cold, and I don’t mind it too much. I also like to wake up with a nice view of our campsite and the surroundings.

It is peaceful here, with the distant sounds of the ocean surf crashing on the shore. Once we got comfortable in bed, a light rain began to fall, so I got up and closed all the window covers.

February 12, 2018 – Monday

I slept pretty well on our first night here. It was not that cold during the night. In the early morning the raccoons came for a visit and, they found the only thing I left outside under the bench, my ice chest filled with bottled water and ice. Knowing full well how much they like ice, they munched on that for a while and left the bottled water alone. I heard the sounds of the ocean roaring all night. Not always a pleasant sound to sleep by.

This morning was a cold sunny morning. I was getting annoyed again trying to get my stove lit. I want my coffee!

The boys and I took a morning walk, and I stopped to talk with some of the park employees, and they told me this area is definitely bear country. They also told me Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park is much worse for bears. I have a bear proof ice chest that I use mostly because it keeps ice longer, and I also have beer proof metal containers, but I rarely use them unless I am in the backcountry. If there were a lot of bears around, I would use those as well.

As with Robertson Grove, there are a lot of roots above the ground here, so I have to remember to watch my step, so as not to trip or injury myself.

My liquid fuel stove was still not lighting, so I went into the trailer to look for my new propane stove that was hidden in the trailer somewhere. Digging through all my stuff I finally found it, and next to it was my old propane stove, so I thought I would try using the old one first. I had extra propane canisters just for this occasion. It started up with no problem, so I put my coffee on, and fixed breakfast for me and the boys.

While making breakfast I noticed a bird that flew on a branch just over where I was cooking. It was a bird I had never seen before. He or she was very curious with what I was cooking, and just watched. It was about the size of a robin, with a light gray body, darker gray wings, a black crown on top of it’s head, and a short beak. A beautiful bird. I saw a couple of them in camp. I found out later it was a Gray jay. They are not suppose to be this far south according to so-called experts. And of course they are in the jay family. A Steller’s jay also dropped by in camp, but didn’t stay. We also have the crows around. I am excited to see the birds around.

I am pondering about staying here for two weeks. It is a beautiful area and close to the ocean. I have to focus on keeping a clean camp to avoid any bear issues if one decides to come into the campground. I don’t want a bear destroying our camp. Most people tend to ignore these warnings that can effect all campers. I tend to be much more cautious then most because I can’t afford to lose things that a bear may decide to destroy. And depending where I am at, it may be hard to replace.

Afternoon Entry

I was having a hard time shaking being in a pissy mood. It seems to come and go like the waves in the ocean.

We went to find some firewood and to go shopping for food. The first place we went for firewood was closed. It was a nonprofit group that was selling it, So I called the number, and they returned the call, and only had cedar and pine combined, and it was probably over priced. So we continued on to the next place a couple of miles away. When I pulled into the driveway, I saw a lady with a whole pallet of firewood in her truck, and I knew this was the right place. But I was clearly surprised by the cost of the wood. I told the person I was talking with, that I wanted oak, he told me it was wet. I asked what other type of wood he had, and he told me they had almond. Reluctantly I said, perfect and told him to load it up, and include two bundles of redwood kindling. The pallet was a quarter cord, and with the kindling came to $124.00, that put a hole in my pocket. The quarter cord was $108.00 and $16.00 for the kindling. In the end I was happy with the almond, it is a good burning hardwood, with a great aroma when it burns. They just slipped the pallet right into the bed of my truck, with a little adjusting for making room. If I burn it twice a day it should last for a week. I don’t burn big campfires. To me it is a waste, I like them somewhat small to medium in size. And while I am writing this in my journal, I am burning some right now. It started quickly without a fuss. And providing some nice heat.

I was a little concerned about bringing that much wood into the campground, but no one was at the kiosk entry, so I slid right in unnoticed. I was happy to get all that firewood. I have never had a problem getting large loads of firewood into campgrounds, but there is always a first time

The noise I heard during the night that I thought was the surf, was actually the heavy wind blowing. I guess we had a lot of rain that came in during the night, with the wind.

This evening the boys were getting excited about something just outside of our camp. I thought it might be a raccoon. I saw a pair of eyes glowing at me, then I put the flashlight on the critter that was about 20 yards from me. It was bigger than a raccoon and thought it might be a mountain lion. I then got a better look at it and it was a gray fox.

Today I visited the Sumeg Village leaving the boys in the truck. I wasn’t there long. Just a quick walk through. It was really interesting. I may checked it out further on my walk with the boys tomorrow.

I also spotted a robin this afternoon.

I was thinking today how I have been acting angrily about the littlest things, and for no real reason. I have to nip that in the bud.

I heard the fox call this evening that was exciting.

February 13, 2018 – Tuesday

We got up at 7:30 am with blue skies, and not to cold.

We took our morning walk to the Sumeg Village and hoping to explore it a bit further, then I saw a sign stating, “No Dogs Allowed.” So that was that!

I did say a prayer, and a tobacco offering just outside of the Village to the spirit beings. When I approached this area I felt I was approaching a sacred place. I had similar feelings when I was in Hawaii and felt a connection to the land of the Native Hawaiian people, and to the people themselves.

I have noticed this campground is pretty popular because of the redwood woodlands, the ocean, the beauty of this whole landscape, and of course in collecting Agates. It was also close to City populations.

In my past life I would be wanting to explore new areas, I would want to collect agates, and do the usual fun stuff. And now, it does not mean I wouldn’t do some of those things, they just aren’t priorities for me. If we did go to the beach, I would not pick up any agates unless one called to me. I don’t need more stuff, and would rather leave them for others to enjoy. I am learning to have more respect for nature, being more aware of the impact I have in the natural world. I am fine with observing nature in a way where I would not disturb them buy picking up a thing, or picking a flower or leaf. I am fine just observing nature. Now I do have to say, I am restricted in what I can do, due to the boys. Especially in any areas with other dogs that could be off lease.

During our time slowly moving up north, my time has been focused on connecting deeply with nature, in having a strong and spiritual relationship with all life, in the plants, in the trees, in the animals, in the four elements, in the air, the water, the earth, and fire – connecting to the life force of pure awareness, of all that is. Once one experiences this, it becomes a transforming experience into a different reality of consciousness, one experiences the awe, the beauty, and wonder in all life forms with more intensity. We begin to see that all life is connected to each other in a beautiful balance of creation. We gain an understanding that we are all connected to this web of life, we are all One with the Creator. All life becomes a miracle through our experiences.

Being able to share these experiences with the boys is truly magical. Just our presence with each other brings a deeper love and bond with one another in each day.

A lot of our time in nature is just spent in the process of living. Doing the cooking, shopping for those things we need on a day by day basis, doing laundry, and so on. These thing take more time then in the mainstream lifestyle of most. Writing in the journal can also take a good part of my time. I spend a little time photographing, but not a lot. I should do more, but I would rather just experience those moments. It can also be difficult to photograph with the boys on our walks. They never stand still for me to snap a photo, or they want to be in the photo. Keep in mind, they are always on leash. When an image is presented to me. I will photograph that image. I also very seldom bring my camera with me while going on walks with the boys.

I am not to interested in sight seeing, and one reason is because of the boys. Our sight seeing is on our walks, or just sitting in camp or on our drives from place to place. It is amazing what one can experience just being still, and watching, and listening from camp. For me, this can be all I need. I never feel I have to always be doing something – being busy just to be busy.

We are all looking for miracles in our lives. We look for them outside of ourselves, and not within. Being in nature in silence, we can find these miracles everywhere in the most unlikely places. Nature opens up our senses of Being that is filled with beauty, awe, and wonder where miracles happen when we go within. We can find it in a simple blade of grass gently waving in the wind, or in a single flower that opens up to the energy of the Sun in it’s vibrant color(s) and shapes, or looking at an alpine meadow where it is surrounded by magnificent mountains that reach into the sky above, or on a lake sparkling with glistening diamonds, or being as smooth as glass, mirroring the landscape within and without. It can be a humming bird buzzing around ones head, or from flower to flower for it’s sweet nectar, or a hawk soaring effortlessly in the sky, screeching to it’s mate that echos among the trees, and mountain tops. I once saw while sitting in camp, a bee circling near by me, flying in small circles, hovering over the ground. It eventually landed and began to dig, then just disappeared in a hole that was invisible seconds ago. It was the bee’s nest. It was a thing of beauty, and of wonder, natures provides to those who are observing of their surroundings. It can be the silent energy of the surrounding trees, or taking in a deep cleansing breath of the clean mountain air or the saltiness of an ocean breeze. With breath, it connects us to the oneness of all life. With our five senses, sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste, only nature can provide a cornucopia of experiences within us. Or the Sun rising every morning giving us a miraculous new day to new experiences. These are truly miracles we get to enjoy on our beautiful planet.

I could stay here easily for a month, but the limited stay is 14 days at the campground. Too bad.

I love burning the almond wood, sitting next to a campfire and having the nice aroma of the fire to enjoy on these cool mornings. Having a fire is good for staying warm, for cooking, and a sense of comfort. It provides light in the darkness of night. It can help reduce the fear factor as well, at least maybe a little. It can also be used in making tools, and be used for rescue if needed, or in clearing the ground from over growth of vegetation. The campfire has many uses, and purposes. For traditional cultures it is used in ceremonies – fire is seen as being sacred, one of the four elements of the natural world. For me, I have learned to see it as being part of the sacred, and to show respect for it’s powers and beauty.

From what I have seen, and observed, I believe most people don’t truly appreciate or respect the campfire for what it truly gives us in so many ways as it once did. They think it is a ritual that is part of camping, but not appreciating its true value. Most think, the bigger the fire the better. It is a ritual that has been part of the creation of the human species for tens of thousands of years, but the respect for fire has been lost, as with so much that has in our experiences in nature.

I have still been trying to get my liquid gas stove to work with no luck. I think I just have to resign in trying, and just send it off to the stove graveyard.

Our campsite is very large, and very wooded. It gives some sense of privacy, of seclusion. It has a nice open area within the site. It is hard to find such sites in a campground. Most sites are crammed together giving very little to no privacy. It feels like we are in our own private wooded area. It does feel like it is always wet in our site, but on nice days it dries pretty quick. Our access to water is close as with our access to the toilets. We are close to the cabin rental area, and parking. We also have close access to the beach down below from the parking area, although we are lying pretty high above the beach. The campground is under an umbrella of magnificent beauty along the coastal cliffs of the Pacific Northwest.

The critters we have seen in, or near camp thus far is the gray fox, Steller’s Jay, the gray jay (also know as the Canadian jay, whisky jack), the junco. The trees in camp are the Sitka spruce, and the red alder. There were a lot of ferns and moss that covered the ground.

Our friends the Gray jays and the Steller’s jays came to visit our camp to see what‘s cooking. No food seemed to be cooking yet, so they left.

(Photo of Gray Jays)

If the weather is good we will most likely stay for another week. Additional cost including firewood: $356.00.

Evening Entry

I spent some time attempting to identify the birds, animals and trees we ran across on our walks, or just listening to the sounds in nature.

We talked with Arwin at the kiosk for a bit, then went to the store in Trinidad for gas and some ice. Tomorrow we are suppose to possibly get rain.

I found my DVD player among all the stuff I have in the trailer, so tonight will be movie night.

It would be nicer at times to live lighter, but we are living in nature indefinitely, in all her seasons, weather, and conditions, and I wanted to be prepared as much as possible in any conditions we are faced with. It is not a weekend camping trip for one or two nights. The plan is also spending a lot of time in the wilderness. I also wanted to test, as well as try out different camping equipment on this journey.

February 14, 2018 – Wednesday

We woke up to scattered clouds, and when we finally got up around 8:15 am, the sky was overcast.

It was a difficult night getting a goodnight sleep. As in many nights, doubts creep into my mind about, what the hell am I doing out here? Is this really a smart thing to do? Especially facing the wilds of Alaska? But when my head clears from this sleepy haze and from these thoughts that want to drag me down, and look outside, nature calls to me in her healing ways. She tells me, we are suppose to be here. I say good morning to the boys as I always do each and every morning, and they come to me with an excited, and loving greeting back, with cries and licks. Then everything seems as it is suppose to be – me and my two companions enjoying nature together.

Once we get up and step outside, I take a deep cleansing breath of the fresh ocean air, the scent of the trees and plants all around us. Takota and Nanook raising their noises into the breeze for any scents they may pick up. I then know why we are here. It is simple. To deeply experience the beauty, and awe and wonders of nature. I wonder what it would be like in a dogs world experiencing keener senses than the human?

At 10:00 am it was hard telling what the weather will do. Will it rain, or shower, or just remain cloudy? It is hard gauging where the weather is coming from and how bad or good it might be, with the heavy tree coverage blocking our view from the sky in our camp.

Even with the coming of rain it was a beautiful morning. It felt like I was in Hawaii.

This morning we had some visitors come into camp for a visit and what’s for breakfast. At least four Steller’s jays seemed to enjoy the bird seed, and a couple of whisky jacks, waiting for the main dish on the menu, bacon, eggs, and some of the boy’s kibble. Whatever the boys leave, the whisky jacks would be happy to clean the bowls for anything left behind.

We also had a couple of new visitors we have not seen before. I am not sure of the species of birds. They had beautiful orange markings. When I went to grab my binoculars, they all flew off.

A friend of mine asked me how I prefer writing our experiences in nature. I prefer writing in a journal. I had brought with us quite a few journals. Writing in a journal gives me a sense of freedom in what I write vs. writing in an iPad or laptop. It is also much easier. I just open the journal and write, sitting in my writing chair, next to a small fire. I don’t have to worry about having any power, and I can do it anywhere. Because I just let it flow, I tend to make a few mistakes in writing, but I will rewrite them later for a finished product that hopefully makes more sense.

Once I finished my coffee, finishing writing in the journal, and buttoning up camp for any chance of rain, we were off to get some things done in town.

Afternoon Entry

I dropped by the Visitor Center at the campground, and the guy I spoke with was much more knowledgeable then most about the flora and fauna here. Surprisingly most park rangers know very little about the place they work at, which surprises me. This guy told me about the gray jay that should not be this far south, but obviously it is. He talked with a so-called expert about this, and the expert said he was wrong. He was also able to tell about the bird that came into our camp and told me it was a Varied Thrush. As with the quail, the Varied thrush seems to like to come out to feed after a rain.

We got a lot done today. From the campground it took about 45 minutes to get to Eureka. While in Eureka, we first dropped by the USFS office to get a Senior Pass to save 50% off of camping. I only got a one year pass because I wasn’t sure if it was going to be worth it, with the possible restrictions that may apply. I saw a triple AAA office in town so I dropped by to renew my membership, then off to Safeway, and picked up $200 worth of food there. And then filled up my truck with gasoline. Then before heading back to camp I dropped off the wood pallet at the wood place. We arrived back at camp at 3:00 pm.

It began raining in Eureka and Arcada, and when we arrived at Patrick’s Point, the rain had stopped. At 5:00 pm, it was partly cloudy. It was cold with a breeze, but beautiful out. We did get a little rain. The next two days are suppose to be sunny.

I also got a contact person from the Yurok tribe and left a message for them about meeting to learn more about the Yurok people. I thought it would be a perfect place to meet at the Sumeg Village to talk. Hopefully it will happen.

On our journey north, I have touched on in my writing the Pomo, the Sinkyone, and now the Yurok peoples, that inhabited northern California. In these brief writings, had to rely on written material, and on internet searches of their history. I cannot say all I have written is totally accurate. It is hard to discern what is truth and what is false or not totally the truth. It can be difficult relying on American History bias for the truth that actually occurred with the original peoples prior to and during the occupation of the settlements and colonization of the Europeans to this land, and about what truly happened between the new ones on the block and the original peoples that had inhabited this land for thousands of years prior to the invasions. One thing is true, brutal atrocities and cultural genocide against these native peoples did happen. And the land unjustly taken by the colonizers.

The different Indian tribes along the west coast of the Pacific Ocean were very similar, taking advantage of the rich food sources in the ocean, estuaries, marsh lands, foothills, and wooded habitats, and with the benefits of the temperate weather conditions.

The Yurok people of California are the largest tribe in the State. In the 1800s, the Yurok extended from the mouth of the Klamath River north to Wilson Creek, near Cresent City, and south to Little River, near McKinleyville. The Yurok people had fifty-six villages, from the north at Big Lagoon to the south at Trinidad. The villages varied in size from two to as many as 24 houses.

The Yurok were a “water” people whose lives and villages were centered around the rivers and sea. The name Yurok indicated a people who lived “down river.”

Each village functioned independently, with no need for a central government – no chief, no army, no courts and no police. There were no laws to secure the public interest. There was no need for this type of bureaucracy in these cultures. They were a peaceful people, and used trade with their neighbors that built a close relationship within this community.

The men hunted, fished and built canoes, the women gathered food in the abundant ecosystem that surrounded them. They were also known as excellent basket makers, as were the Hupa, Pomo, and Sinkyone tribes, as with other neighboring tribes along the coastal regions.

At this campground lies a replica of a small Yurok villege and is not an actual site (no original structures remained from that time a couple of centuries ago), the setting is close to traditional Yurok summer food-gathering locations.

In 1990 an all-Yurok crew constructed this village. It was officially named Sumeg – a name that means forever – in the hope that it the village would endure for generations to come. Today the village is used as a site for cultural and educational activities that preserve the heritage of several neighboring tribes – Yurok, Kuruk and Hoopa.

In 1973 the Patrick’s Point Garden Club created a garden in the park that consisted of plants and herbs native to this foggy coastal environment. In 1997 the garden was reestablished as a Native American plant garden, that is adjacent to Sumeg Village. It contains examples of plants that have been used for thousands of years by the Yurok people – some for food, and others for ceremonial purposes, medicine and basket making.

It is long overtime that we show the importance of the role these indigenous people play in the world. One thing I have learned from the indigenous people of the world is to show respect for all. And to see all life as being sacred. Knowing we are all connected to the circle of life and not being separate from. Much of the human race has broken this web that keeps us connected to all things – to this life force that we are all a part of. Through pure awareness, and experiencing stillness, can we find our way back to our natural place with all life.

Below are images of a typical Sumeg Village. Each village varied in size, from two to as many as 24 houses.

Family House

The structure was built with redwood planks split from fallen logs using elk antlers and wooden wedge tools. Carved planks were used on the roof for drainage. A covered skylight opening in the roof provided light, ventilation and for smoke from the fire inside to escape. The entire structure was lashed together with hazel saplings. To process the saplings to a pliable rope, they were rapidly heated in a fire. With the internal heat, the saplings burst into fibers that were then soaked and twisted into rope.

The houses were built on two levels, with the lower level (a square pit) where the fire burned, and the women and children slept during the cold winter months. When the weather was good, everyone slept outside. The upper level of the shelter had a broad ledge around the top of the pit for storage of baskets, wooden chests, and food. The Yurok people would never fell a live standing trees, for they saw them as sacred beings. The Native Americans and the First Nations of Canada saw all life, in the plants, the trees, the animals, in the four elements of air, water, earth, and fire, and even in the rock as being sacred. These beliefs have brought me to this place in nature.

Changing House

The shelters are used as changing rooms for today’s Brush Dancers. Each tribe – Kuruk. Yurok, and the Hoopa, has its own changing house.

Dance Pit

When a child became spiritually ill, they would use a dance pit for a brush dance – a healing spiritual and social social event for the child that would last several days and nights. A gathering together of friends and family to eat and participate in the ceremony.

In preparing for the healing dance, the local medicine woman would gather herbs, fast for ten days and ritually purify herself in the sweat house. The medicine woman would then sit in the pit and would prepare steaming, curative mixtures of herbs to help the child. Mother and child sat across the fire from the medicine woman, who faced east, while the men and unmarried woman in ceremonial clothes dance around them. The women’s shell-bedecked dresses “sang like rushing streams and wind in the trees” when they moved.

Sweat House

The sweat houses were an important part of to the Yurok culture, as with many, if not all Indigenous cultures in North America. When the weather was to harsh, the men and boys sheltered in the sweat houses to sleep. The house was a low structure mostly underground and having a separate entrance and exit. They were used for bathing and ritual purification by men and on occasion by the local medicine women.

A fire would be made inside the wooden structure and once the fire turned to coals, the participates entered the house. They would know this when the smoke stopped seeping through the structure.

Once the individuals felt their purification was complete, they would leave through the exit door where a source of water awaited to wash and completed their sweat. This process can be very exhausting to the participants and some may have to lay down outside the structure, before rinsing in the water.

Redwood Canoe

The canoes were made from naturally fallen redwood trees. For one person to build such a canoe, it could take up to seven years to build. These vessels were very seaworthy. The average canoe weighed about a 1,000 pounds, and seagoing hunting canoes were 40-50 feet long.

The Yurok believed their canoes had spirits and to keep from transferring any bad spirits to their canoe, the builders would never work on them when being angry or spiritually troubled. The canoe was seen as a leaving being. It was created with a nose at the bow, lungs and heart in the middle, kidneys at the end in the stern.

The builder of the canoe would cut a log of required length, and with bone tools and fire, would begin the long process of transforming the log into a usable canoe. Once the log was selected it would be moved to a nearby stream and floated to a good spot where the arduous construction would begin. Once the canoe was completed it would remain in the water to prevent cracking

Evening Entry

The rain has stopped, but the wind is keeping things chilly. I don’t know what the weather forecast will be for tonight.

The spatula I have been using for cooking, Nanook decided he would use it for a chew toy. I will have to look for my other one.

I am looking up out to the starry night thinking it might be a good sign for no rain. But in reality that means nothing. I decided to open up the tent for the night.

I have a 4 person tent we brought with us, and thought at some point I would set it up to see how we all fit in it. We may need it at some point.

February 15, 2018 – Thursday

We got up at 8:30 am though it was hard getting up because it felt so nice and warm in the sleeping bag. The temperature read 37deg. that my mind rejected until I stepped outside. And it was cold with clear blue skies. We do get direct sunlight when it is directly above us, but quickly comes and goes with the short winter days and the Sun moving lower in the sky.

In our situation I have a lot to consider when choosing a good campsite. And we are lucky to get some of those things in a campsite. I do really like our camp, but with no view of the ocean which would be nice to have. But then again, we would have to contend with the potential high winds coming through camp making it challenging. I would rather have a camp protected from the winds. We are close to the cliffs leading down to the sea. There are a lot of high thick brush and spruce trees that block our view to the Pacific Ocean.

Considering we have the road that passes our campsite for access to four rental cabins, day use parking, and to get to other campsites, it is pretty quiet overall. And this is what I am looking for – quiet to experience the sounds of nature and not people.

In my campsite I do have two picnic tables that is nice, but the way they are positioned does not make much sense to me, and they cannot be moved. But it is nice having that extra table space. We also have a food locker that is near to one of the picnic tables. I use the top of the food locker as a counter. It is almost like a galley type kitchen layout. Since we could have potential bear visitor, I do keep the camp clean from any food scraps.

There is a big tree limb that leans over one of the picnic tables that makes it difficult to maneuver around, but I found a good use for it, by hanging a lantern on one of the broken limbs, and a trash bag over another.

This morning the jays came in to camp for breakfast. A gray jay was watching what the Steller’s jays were eating, and thought, “what is this I see?” For the past few days they have been waiting for the big catch, bacon, eggs and kibble. He or she decided maybe it was worth checking out, and flew over to the bird seed and picked up a sunflower seed then took off with it.

We also had a covey of quail running between some thick brush and the roadway at our camp. A little later they came through an opening of trees closer into our camp. There were about seven or eight of the them.

Those who walk by our camp are pretty quiet, but Takota makes it known to them there is no trespassing allowed with his persistent barks. He makes it known to strangers, he is the camp protector. Nanook is not bothered by people unless a dog is with them. So far we haven’t had any issues with dog here.

There are restrooms across from the cabins, and that is where the water, and garbage is also. There is also another water spigot closer to us and next to the cabins. They have a shower building close to the Camp Hosts site that is also close to our camp.

I was getting turned around in my directions thinking the shoreline was running along the northerly direction, but it was actually running northwesterly. The shoreline does bend back to a north / south direction a bit further north of us.

We had a visitor come visit us last night. It sounded like a raccoon. It knocked something over on the table. I found out in the morning this critter knocked the stove off the table. Luckily it wasn’t damaged. I think it was probably the fox who was causing the trouble.

Yesterday, I picked up four canisters of propane for $10.00 each. That was extremely expensive. The canisters usually lasted for three days, cooking breakfast and dinner. I tried my liquid gas stove that I still held onto, but still no luck getting it to work. I will get my new liquid gas stove out today or tomorrow. It will be much cheaper to use.

I only have three full days left here, and I will pay for another eight days. This place is to nice to leave unless we get a lot of rain.

While washing the frying pan I was watching a guy and girl walking down to the beach. I felt thoughts of being in a relationship. How it might be nice having someone of the opposite sex being around to help out, and for companionship. That quickly shifted to my wonderful and fulfilling relationship with Takota and Nanook. And thought, this is all I need. I have always had a need for being in a relationship with a women. It is nice not having that need now. That is all I would be thinking about if I did.

Since I was feeling lazy and didn’t feel like looking for the spatula, I just fixed some bacon and sausage, without the eggs.

It is 11:00 am and it is still cold. The temperature in the tent read 46 deg. but it seems much colder. But I love it. And I know the boys prefer it.

Afternoon Entry

I paid for eight more days and will be leaving here on Monday the 26^th of February. My plans were to stay at Prairie Creek State Park, and Jedediah Smith State Park for the month of March, then head into Oregon. An approximate date in reaching Alaska was June 1^st. I had no idea of the type of weather I would be hitting on the long drive up. I chose Alaska as my final destination because of the wildness of Alaska, and far less restrictions then the lower forty-eight as far as camping goes. But it is much more dangerous with the personality of extremes Alaska presents. It is a place one cannot take for granted, especially a new comer knowing very little about it. I also wanted to go up there to learn from the native people in their traditions and cultures.

Camping in the winter, spring, and fall can be, and is a challenge with weather. Once I get into Oregon, I want to head into central Oregon and eastern Washington to avoid the coastline winter weather. In my mind, I imagine endless rain that I would not want to deal with day after day. At least not camping in a tent. So far, we have not dealt with a lot of rain. The typical light showers I find refreshing, and contributes to the beauty of nature and the experiences of the changing seasons. My plan is to take Hwy 199 into Oregon, moving us away hopefully to dryer weather inland.

I met Nancy, a volunteer at the Visitor Center. A nice lady.

They were doing a lot of maintenance in the campground, so I stopped at where they were working next to the restrooms and asked if they could get the broken glass cleaned up at my campsite. I was finding that broken glass at campsites was a big problem. That glass was usually from wine glasses or beer bottles. It seems it is not that important for campers to clean the glass up. They don’t think or care about other campers or wildlife. They just treat nature as their garbage dump. I am concerned about the safety of my dogs, of the wildlife, and me. I find I am always on my hands and knees while starting a campfire, which exposes me to injury from glass on the ground. And for parents who let their children go barefoot, or just playing in the dirt. This is something I have a big issue with, and how people can be so disrespectful.

The maintenance guys said they would come by to get it cleaned up. Once they arrived I was surprised they did show up. They have a busy schedule in all the things they need to get done. I showed them where I found glass and they began cleaning it up. There are many times one will find the park not being so cooperative in campers requests, so I showed my deep appreciation for them doing it for us. One of the guys was also helpful in helping me better understanding the park rules and regulations. I learned very quickly how important it was to be very friendly to the park employees. If they feel appreciated they are more likely to help when help may be needed. Being kind is a good mantra to live by.

It was a cold day all day with a cold breeze attached to it. A cold night could follow.

February 16, 2018 – Friday

It was cold last night, but I slept well within the warmth of my sleeping bag. At 6:00 am it was already getting light, and the birds were active in their songs. I heard fluttering next to the tent, and it could have been no other than the juncos arriving in camp. The Steller’s jays, and the Varied thrushes joined the party. And one robin came in to join in the feast. The quail covey came for a walk through in the camp. I hear the crows and ravens everyday but seldom see them. They never come to visit our camp.

We got up at 7:00 am to get the morning started. It is a cool 39 deg. I got a nice fire going, and a cup of coffee ready to be sipped. I actually thought I saw a crow in camp, high on a branch of a spruce.

Everybody is back this morning, the quail, the junco, the jays, and the thrush. The quail seems to like the bird seed. A total of twelve quail appeared this morning. It is nice being visited by so many birds. They seem not to be bothered by the boys at all, and the boys don’t mind our bird friends.

I quietly got up for more coffee so as not to disturb the birds feeding, and scared the quail. They soon returned. A gray jay just dropped by and landed on the stove to see what was cooking. The Steller’s jay dive bombed the quail, pushing them away from the seed. The quail left, then came back once again.

When we can open up fully to the experiences in nature, she will show us beauty few ever see.

In trying to take photos of all the birds, it is hard to get any clear shot because they are always moving. I haven’t figured out how to adjust my shutter speed on my camera. That would help!

The bird activities are beginning to quiet down. It was exciting to see all the birds in camp. This is the most bird activity in camp so far. I am sure the bird feed helped. The quail seemed to be the most skittish of the birds, but would always return.

This morning while taking in deep breaths of the fresh ocean air, it reminds me of being in Hawaii.

We have been camping now for close to three months, our home is in a tent and in nature. My expectations for experiencing a deeper connection in nature has been difficult at times, but has also been easy at times. It feels I am being drawn in by nature’s calling more often. My thoughts that fills my mind and pulls me away from what is the now, and the feelings from within my heart that brings me closer to what is in the present moment – in a place of awe and wonder with the natural world. Expectations that takes me out of the present moment and takes me to a place in the future somewhere that does not even exist, or in the past that is no longer a place, but only an illusion of what once was – the good, the bad, and the ugly. I drift into those moments, and just as quickly, I can fall out of them, like the waves of the ocean. If we can only experience both as just part of the beingness of the moment as does the ebb and flow of the waves, being neither good nor bad, but just is – the rhythmical pattern of coming and going or the declining and rebirth. The ocean does not see the ins and outs of the waves as being good or bad, it is just the natural flow of what is.

As I am still getting my feet wet in figuring out this life style that is so different from what it was for over 60 years of my life, it feels so naturally as it should be.

In focusing on being there – the end result, where ever that is, and just being (being in the present moment). I find myself always chasing this elusive something that is always fleeting in my thoughts. I also cannot help, just being in the moment through experiences that nature brings to me within myself. It can only be found within, and not outside of us. It comes from the simple joys in our lives, and not from, when this happens my life will be better, happier, and more abundant. We fight to achieve the very thing we have been taught all our lives, and that is to thrive through a materialistic world. Through this life style I have chosen, I choose the simple way of life, in minimizing the materialistic treadmill of modern day life so many of us have been consumed with – in the need to constantly achieve more, to have more, that defines how successful we are in the more stuff we have. It is this endless loop we find ourselves stuck in. And yet we never feel truly happier in life, in being fulfilled internally within ourselves. Yet, we continue doing what is not working. We continue doing the same thing over and over again in hopes thing will get better.

For me, to focus on a deeper relationship in and with nature, and allowing nature to be my teach through respecting the plants, in the trees, and in the animals. To feel the experiences of connectedness and love with all life. With the realization that we are all one with all life forms, and not separate from. When we become aware of thoughts, that do not helps us on our path, we stop them at what I call the “Gate Keeper’s” entrance to who we truly are, and ask the question, “Will these thought help me in becoming my authentic self (my true self), or will it move me towards the false ego self, my inauthentic self?”

I am still searching my way on this path I have chosen, and dealing with the doubts that play in my head, and in my dreams, or should I say, nightmares I experience every night. But when I awaken each and every morning, I am greeted by the boys with their unconditional love, and greeted by nature through her abundant beauty and songs. And this gives me hope that I am on the right path. But when we search for it as I have mentioned in the beginning of this paragraph, when we search for it, we will never find it, because it has always been here in our authentic self. We just have to look deep within. And this process can be all consuming in this world we live in. Nature can help us go within, she can teach us that all life is connected as one life.

Throughout these writings I talk about “going within” because this is the only path that will move us to a more authentic life in this life of form. But it can be a very challenging and difficult path to walk. By asking questions, we will be guided in the right direction.

Evening Entry

Not much to say. It was a cold and breezy day. I attempted to charge the iPad with my solar, and got up to about 9%. The sunlight was occasionally blocked by cloud cover.

For the first time the juncos and thrushes came by for dinner. It seems when birds find a good source of food they share it with all other birds. There were quite a few juncos that flew in. Then something scared them and they all scattered. Then as quickly as they scattered, they are back again to finish their meal.

I am pretty much out of food, so time to go shopping tomorrow. I will also put the canopy up tomorrow for some cover from possible rains expected on Sunday and Monday. Saturday will be our week mark being here. And one more week to go.

I got a little reading done then took the boys for an evening walk around our campground loop.

Last night our camp was invaded by critters again. There were some footprints on the ice cooler. I also disconnected the propane from the stove and placed the stove next to my ice cooler and picnic table so the critters wouldn’t knock the stove off the table again.

At 6:30 pm we had a starry, starry night with the wind blowing through the campground, but missing our camp. Our camp is pretty well shielded from the wind in all directions.

I will get camp locked up from the critters, then do some reading. Then maybe watch a DVD of Survivor Man for some entertainment. I was hoping to get more reading done, but with the cold and early dark nights that comes in winter, I don’t get much reading done. And I don’t read well lying down on my bed. At least that is my excuse.

February 17, 2018 – Saturday

A cloudy morning. We are only getting a few new birds coming in camp this morning, and I don’t know the species of them. Last night I had the best night sleep in the past four months. No doubts, and no bad dreams.

I was reading one of Wayne Dyer’s books about the energy we create in our lives. It can be loving energy or the energy of anger. Times in my life I have had both, but I would say it was mostly anger energy. I pondered on that for a bit and chose to live a loving life, and removing all anger from my life. It is simply a chose we make. But this anger energy can creep into our unconscious, and rise into our consciousness, and if we allow it to, it can then take control through proving we are right, or labeling, or in judgment. These toxic thoughts and energy moves us away from love. Love brings us together to who we truly are, where anger and hatred pulls us apart and divides us. We have been brain washed in believing through the lying ego, as with in our society, that hatred, and anger gives us control over others and even within ourselves. Again, this is coming from the lying ego. It is only an illusion we live with, and only by choice, and the stories we tell ourselves. We always have the choice on the path we pursue, and what we truly want for ourselves. It always comes from within. Is it time for us to tell a new story?

We must become “Gate Keepers” of our thoughts. A filter of what thoughts we allow into our consciousness and what thoughts we don’t. We can also feel this through our energy field. As being aware in our outside world, we must also be aware in our inner world. This does not mean to judge what comes into our mind, but just being aware – to be the watcher of our thoughts.

Back in the 90s I had experienced an awakening, a spiritual transformation that literally changed my life. And one of the practices I used to help me stay on the good path was the Gate Keeper approach. It can be very effective, but it has to be used all the time. In my new awareness, I was always watching what thoughts came to mind, and using my filtering process in deleting them or allowing them through. The gauge in determining this was, through one simple question. Will it help me move forward in being a better person, a more loving person, and will it bring me peace? It works very well in diffusing negative energy quickly. It is our choice to choose who we want to become.

Afternoon Entry

Today is much warmer then the last couple of days. Most of the day was overcast, and on occasion a little speck of blue sky would appear through the clouds.

I talked with Mrs Host for a friendly chat at our campsite. She is a nice lady, as with her husband Mr. Host. In our chat she told me she grew up for part of her young life in San Leandro, the same place I grew up in. After our chat, I put up the canopy and added some Christmas lights that I had, to add some joy to our site. Unfortunately the canopy doesn’t cover our cooking area (which I prefer), but it does provide a nice covering from the rain for me and the boys to enjoy being outside. It is 30” from the canopy to the fire ring. Not far enough to prevent embers from burning holes in the canopy cover.

We went to Safeway in Arcada and spent $126.00. A quarter of that is for the boys. I give them small amounts of human food in their kibble because they are spoiled. It also gives them a better tasting meal besides just eating plain kibble.

There was a family that arrived next to us that rented a cabin, and having a trailer. They are a bit loud from their excitement in being here. It is a weekend gathering with family. It is indeed a special place to be to spend time in nature. It is unfortunate that in our culture, we have been taught that nature is there for recreation, and not for the simple pleasures of enjoying, experiencing, and just being with nature. We were never taught to honor and respect our planet, and all life on the planet.

While I am writing, rain drops are lightly falling. It feels like it will be a wet night.

The Day Use area is busy. Some people who ignore signs about dogs not being on the State Park beach, just plays dumb if they get caught. If they get caught they would probably say “Oh I am sorry, we didn’t see any signs,” which they did, and ignored, or what I find, people don’t read signs.

I didn’t cook anything for dinner because of the rain. I just had a salad. And for the boys, their kibble.

We turned in at our usual time, 7:30 pm after taking the boys for a short walk. There was a light misty rain tonight that had a calming effect on me. It felt refreshing hitting my exposed skin.

February 18, 2018 – Sunday

We got up at around 8:30 am. We looked outside to determine our weather outlook. It looked okay, then it began to rain. And as quickly as it began, it stopped. It is 47 deg. this morning and very chilly with the wind blowing with all the moisture in the air. The wind blew all night with off and on showers. Light steady showers began between around 3:30 am and 4:00 am, and never stopped until a bit prior to us getting up.

When the wind was blowing through the night our tent barely moved from our little cocoon within the covering of the trees and high brush. And with the comfort of our tent, enjoy the sounds of the wind.

I thought about how nice it would be to have a vestibule attached to the tent to keep the wet clothing out of the tent. But would I use it? Two of my tents have vestibule add-ons, but they would take up too much room and would be hard to find a site to fit them. Both of the tents would just be too large to be practical with the campsites in most campgrounds. It is nice having a comfortable camp, but I also want to minimize having to take down more then I have to when moving from camp to camp. It has been taking an average of two hours to take a camp down and packed up, and it would take longer to set up with those tents.

This morning when we got up, I decided to take the boys out for a walk hopefully before the rain begins. It had stopped raining, but it was very cold out. I saw bits of blue sky and large plumes of clouds to the west. What blue sky we had was quickly lost in the cloud cover. I am guessing we will probably get off and on rain vs a steady rain. Beyond our camp a strong wind is kicking up, while in camp it is pretty peaceful. The wind is not penetrating our fortress of vegetation. I am waiting for the rains to start any time. The clouds are building up for some action. Then, the clouds let loose with a down pour of hail. Time to retreat to the safe protection under the canopy. The boys found protection under two trees. The boys were looking at me under the canopy, and decided the canopy was much better than those trees. They are now laying next to me.

The juncos, robins, and thrush are in camp feeding on the bird seed. A little bit earlier we had about 30 – 35 juncos in camp. The juncos can be hard to see because they blend in with the decaying leaf litter on the ground. The thrush blend in as well.

Today, I will have to pick up more bird seed. We are attracting a huge crowd.

The Sun is trying to pop out from the cloud coverage, and the hale and rain has stopped. The cloudy sky against the ocean looks as if looking at a painting of a stormy seascape. The weather is suppose to be like this all day.

Looking out under the canopy of our little home in nature, I see the juncos happily feeding on the bird seed on the ground. The canopy of spruce trees are covered in hanging moss from it’s branches, and the sunlight streaming through striking the thousands of tiny droplets of water clinging to the tree branches, and needles glowing like tiny lights of diamonds. The ferns and bushes reflecting the sunlight that sparkles throughout the camp. It is a thing of amazing beauty, that only nature can provide to the one who takes the time to notice.

So this morning, assessing the weather, and taking the boys for a short walk, I decide to make a fire this morning, and happy I did. I brewed some coffee under the canopy, then soon made breakfast for me and the boys.

I mentioned the camp was not set up to my liking for this type of weather, and I remembered I have to small portable tables tucked inside the trailer I could get out that could make things a bit better, but I didn’t feel like doing the work taking them out.

I finally got to preparing breakfast for me and the boys at 12:30 pm. The weather looked like it would hold off enough to get everything done. Then dark cloud appeared half way in into the cooking. Then the winds began, and I knew there would be a good chance of rain and hale following. I stopped everything and moved the stove under the canopy to finish up cooking.

The juncos returned as did the quail. Maybe they know the weather will be fine for breakfast.

I placed aluminum foil on the wet picnic table for a place mat so my paper plate wouldn’t get wet.

Although these stormy days adds a little spice to the adventure, wet is wet, and it is hard keeping everything dry, especially me and the boys. I did learn to keep an extra pair of shoes in the tent, so I can let my wet pair dry, as with wet clothing. As for wet dogs, it is impossible to get them completely dry and they don’t seem to care much. Even the expensive canopy leaks.

So far the weather we have been experiencing has not been extreme yet. I am waiting for Oregon, and Washington and the weather it may bring. Our tent has kept us dry so far. But I know most tents are not made to be used everyday, and they will eventually start breaking down as far as the material, the seams, and the zippers. I have not gotten tired of living in a tent. I feel much more connected with nature in a tent as long as the tent keeps us protected from the elements. It makes the whole experience in nature more alive. I also feel a stronger connection with the boys with them being so close to me. We are experiencing this experience always being close to each other – One with each other, and they have been great to be with. This is why I chose doing this journey in a tent, and that is to bring us closer with nature in all that she brings.

Afternoon Entry

We took a drive to the market in Trinidad to pick up some bird seed, and something for dinner that I would not have to cook tonight. But first we dropped by Palmer’s Point to see what type of weather was coming towards us, and it wasn’t looking good.

On our way back from Trinidad to our camp, we saw some blue sky, and the beauty of the Sun’s reflection off the Pacific ocean. It was hopeful we would get some of that blue sky back at camp. On our return to camp I was looking at nothing but gray sky. It was the rainy type of gray clouds, the dark gray clouds that is holding moisture that could release onto the Earth in the form of rain or hail at any time. This is one thing about living in nature, in a tent, one is always aware of what is going on in ones surroundings. One pays attention to the little things that could impacts us in ways we may need to adjust to. Weather is always a factor whether it is rain, hail, snow, or wind. And just being aware, and experiencing those things that is part of nature. It brings us closer to nature, in her mysterious ways and beauty. The very things that provide us with life.

I had a roommate that lived in Southern California for a while then moved up to Northern California where I have always lived. She would complain about the cloudy weather, and the rain we would get. She just wanted sunshine all the time. She would always complain and feel depressed about the gloomy weather we would get. And most people do respond to the weather in this way. I know I did at times. But I had a type of shift in consciousness while reading about how people see and relate to different things such as weather. I began seeing these changes in weather, as beauty, as providing the Earth with needed water for the plants, for the trees, for the animals, and for us. Life cannot survive without this precious element of water. We just want to hide from it. Most people that so-call camp in RV’s, and trailers hide in these shelters when a little rain shower begins, or it gets a bit too chilly or windy. This is why we have a canopy, so we can stay outside as much as we can. We may give up some comfort, but we also experience the beauty of nature. But this does not mean we become foolish either.

I bought two bags of bird seed, so all our bird friends should stay happy with the exception of Whiskey jack who is very selective in what he or she eats.

It began hailing, and the boys do not like it much. It may also be the loud sounds it makes when hitting the surface of things.

A few days ago my left knee was getting sore from kneeling in the wet, cold water, while doing dishes, and developing a sore from the cracking of the skin. I put some coconut oil on the cracked area and it felt much better.

Evening Entry

We had clear skies, clouds, wind, rain, and hail all day, over and over and over again seemingly in an endless cycle. It made it interesting to say the least. Never being able to predict what the weather will be doing next. It could be worse with having continuous non-stop rain and not having a good wind block around our camp. Everything outside is wet, even under the canopy which means no place for the boys to stay dry. At least inside the tent, truck, and trailer are staying dry with no leaks. There is a point when we do have to seek shelter in the tent.

It was an early night for bedtime in our dry tent.

February 19, 2018 – Monday

We woke to part blue skies and clouds. The Sun is out, and I hope it begins to dry things out in camp. The temperature thermometer indicates 34 deg. most of the early morning.

Some of our bird friends were looking for food earlier this morning in camp. I laid a lot out on the ground first thing when we got up, so they should be coming back soon for breakfast. I spread the feed all around camp. They quickly arrived in numbers. Somehow they just know the feed is there for them. It has been a joy watching them in camp with the numbers, and species of birds growing.

We have about 21 split logs left, and I will burn about 3 or so logs this morning. The three logs turned into seven. It is a cold and damp morning. We will restock our firewood today that will last us for a good week while we are here.

It pretty much rained off and on through the night. I was wondering if it would ever stop. We are in the Pacific Northwest in the winter, don’t forget. The hail covered pretty much everything when we got up. The ground is as muddy and wet as it was when we first arrived here just a week ago.

What I could see of the weather forecast, it was suppose to be clear skies all day. It will take a few days for our camp to dry out.

It is 11:18 am, and we just finished breakfast. It is 43 degrees, and cold with a dampness in the air.

Afternoon Entry

A nice and pretty young girl in her twenties I would say, moved into the camp across from us. She was alone, and from Oregon. I was surprises she was doing this alone. Times are changing. Women are becoming more independent. I thought it a bit crazy because of all the crazy people out there and women alone being a potentially easy target.

I picked up my ¼ cord of almond firewood, and also picked up a bundle for the girl. A bundle usually consists of 5 to 6 logs. I also had extra salmon, so I gave her a nice piece of sockeye salmon for her dinner. She openly accepted my offer.

She had no tent and was sleeping in her car. I remember those days when I was young. And never want to do that again.

At 3:00 pm, it was mostly sunny at 41 deg. and very cold and breezy. My firewood supply was good for another week, and then some. I am very happy having a good supply of firewood.

I had noticed the ground at our site was drying surprisingly faster then I thought it would.

This evening before darkness came, the boys and I took a walk before bedtime. The winds had subsided a bit and was not so cold out.

February 20, 2018 – Tuesday

This morning it got down to 33 deg, and overcast with a slight breeze. I felt the cold during the night, but was not too bad. While writing in the journal the wind began rearing it’s ugly head. I believe it is suppose to be cold all week.

As soon as we got up, we went for a walk to warm up. Passing by the girl’s camp next to us, we chatted for a short bit. She is going for a bike ride and may not be returning. She thanked me for the salmon, and gave me a nice drawing she drew of a fish, with her contact info. I did call her just to thank her for the nice drawing, and wished her well on her path in life. I was not sure where I would put the drawing, I decided to hang it on the inside of the trailer door.

(photo of the drawing if I can find it)

The clouds seems to be burning off, and it feels like it might be a warmer day.

Today, the plan was to stack the firewood, sweep the tent floor, get my other stove out, and take a shower.

A new bird came into camp today. I believe they are the Rufous-sided Towee. A beautiful bird with a black hood, wings, and back with white wing bars, and spots, and an orange, and white chest, and red eyes (Male).

Afternoon Entry

It never cleared. It is 4:15 pm and there is some blue sky, but still mostly cloudy. I checked the weather forecast and it looks like possible rain for Wednesday, and Thursday. Sunny Friday, then a chance of rain on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. We are suppose to move on Monday. I am a bit concerned about moving if it rains on Monday. If it does, I will try to extend my stay here for another day.

The weather can put a damper on the things I was hoping to get done. I did get the firewood stacked and covered from the rain, but got nothing else done that I had planned. I did meditate which helped calm the mind, as with taking the boys for a walk.

While I was doing the few things I had to wash at the spigot, near camp, I felt for the first time, a deep sense of peace and presence in this process I do most everyday. It was an amazing experience for such a small act. With the experience of having nature all around me, breathing in the fresh air, I was feeling a deep sense of unbelievable peace within, and unconditional love in this small act of washing dishes. If only I could put this in a bottle to share to all.

The almond wood is crackling from the campfire, shooting embers in every direction. I had to be careful they don’t land on my cloth chair, or on the my clothing I have hanging over the chair to dry.

After removing broken glass from our campsite a few days ago, I found a more of it to pick up. What is wrong with people that they can’t pick up their mess. Many people just don’t think, or don’t care what impact they have in their actions.

February 21, 2018 – Wednesday

Again I had these wonderful dreams of doubt and fear invading my dream space on what I was doing and if I can even do it. I then remember the peace I had the day before while washing dishes.

It sprinkled a little bit here and there through the night. By looking at the ground this morning one couldn’t tell if any rain fell. The ground was dry.

We had a chipmunk visit us this morning for the first time. We have not seen any squirrels here which was surprising to me.

We had some blue sky and partly cloudy with little wind. It was 47 degrees.

Yesterday I was glassing a Steller’s jay. What a beautiful bird they are.

I called the Native American elder about possibly meeting. So far no response. I have my doubts I will get a call back. It is disappointing thus far that I have not been able to connect to the native peoples of this land.

Today looks like it will be a beautiful day weather wise, but everyday in nature, the giver of life is a good day for us – being in this garden in paradise.

I was feeling a little down this morning from my thoughts and dreams that I had during the night. I usually feel fine once I am up, feeling the joy the boys bring to me each and every morning, the joy nature gives to me. But these down feelings in my conscious are lingering a bit this morning, like a hangover from too much to drink. I know once I move around, and feel nature, I will awaken, and these feelings from the remembrance of those bad dreams will disappear.

After writing in the journal next to a warming fire, and feeling rejuvenated with thoughts of what my purpose is in doing this journey with the boys, I knew I was on the right path. And the answers I needed would come. I knew there would be thoughts of fear, and doubt at times, but, so far nature has always brought me to purpose, as with my companions, Takota, and Nanook by my side. The old saying, “A man’s best friend is his dog.” This is so true. Out of all of creation, only one animal can do this like the canine species. A truly amazing gift to mankind.

Afternoon Entry

We drove to the park kiosk for a weather forecast for Monday, and still does not look good for a moving day.

We went to Trinidad to pick up a few food items then took the side road back to camp for a nicer drive then driving on the highway, although the highway provides a scenic drive as well.

It has been a good weather day. The winds are picking up some that are cooling things down.

February 22, 2018 – Thursday

Last night around 4:30 am the rain showers began just as the weather forecast predicted. We waited until 8:30 am to get up. The rain held off until we got back from our morning walk. Back at camp the rain began again, and we got under the protection of the canopy to wait it out. It was cold and we were wet. After the rain subsided, I started a fire with some difficulty. The firewood was wet, and my lighter wouldn’t work. At 9:30 am the sky began to turn to blue skies. The weather forecast predicted the rain would stop at around 10:30 am. The forecast has been close to right on, which is not always the case.

I put the coffee on and the propane bottle went empty. So I got another one, then once again the dark rain clouds appeared, and again the rain started to fall. I looked into the dark cloudy sky above and thought, “It doesn’t look good.” So I put the stove under the canopy, and attaching the new propane bottle into the stove. It was hard getting the empty bottle off because it was wet. And the new bottle wouldn’t screw in. Then the sky let loose with hail, pelting me and the boys. The hail was bouncing all over the camp like popcorn. All I could hear was the force and pounding of the hail falling. I saw more dark clouds coming, then the rain began falling again. I saw slivers of blue sky followed by more rain clouds.

The campfire stayed lit amazingly. I tried getting the propane bottle screwed in, then realized the threads were stripped on the bottle. So I got another bottle and it screwed into the stove with no problem. I was finally able to make my coffee. I had to chuckle at this whole situation. Nothing seemed to go right and seemed to get worse. But that is how things happens at times. Things just don’t go your way. Luckily it was such a small event. I could have gotten frustrated and angry, but I didn’t. Trying to get things done in camp in bad weather makes it much more difficult and frustrating to say the least. It can be hard at time to keep ones cool. But when one can laugh about it, it reduces the stress, and even makes the challenges good learning experiences. That we can actually enjoy and even laugh about.

I was thinking about me and the boys waiting the weather out in the tent, where we could stay warm and dry. But we didn’t.

Camping, or I should say living, in nature, one has to learn from what nature teaches us, and weather is a good teacher, but most hide from it. I have chose to live it – to experience it. No matter how well one prepares for it, nature can always throw challenges our way, making things a little more uncomfortable. Doing this alone, one has to deal with it alone. Sometimes it would be nice having another person for support. But I enjoy being alone in nature with the boys. It brings me much closer to nature.

I asked the boys if they are enjoying this? They just walked away.

Even in these times of discomfort I become more in-tune with nature.

Evening Entry

I have to admit, the weather is getting on my nerves. I have a very short fuse this evening and this anger is being directed at the boys.

It is very cold, and windy. We are going to bed soon. It is 6:00 pm.

February 23, 2018 – Friday

We got up at around 7:30 am, 33 deg. and clear skies.

It is 9:30 am as I am writing this in my journal. The winds are calm with a cool 38 deg.

Last night all I wanted to do is escape from the cold and wind, and we found it in the comfort of our tent. The roaring sounds of the wind diffused all other sounds. It was so loud. In the tent the temperature read 40 deg. I was only wearing underwear, and three layers of upper body protection. A T-shirt, a regular type long sleeve shirt, and a fleece pullover. I was sleeping in the 20 deg. rated sleeping bag, and a silk sleeping bag liner that adds surprisingly more needed warmth. I also had a fleece blanket over my sleeping bag that always slips off the bag. The fleece blanket had a nice Navajo pattern on it.

With my hectic morning and evening of yesterday’s cold winds, and rain, and hail I was able to settle into the protection of the tent with the boys. Focusing on my breathing, it brought me into a peaceful state of being, with each breath I took. A nice change from the stress I was feeling.

So far our Columbia tent is doing well, with only a small leak in a seam.

After breakfast we drove to an Apple store in Arcada and had my iPad looked at. There was nothing wrong with it. So that was a good thing. They told me they would charge it for me and I could pick it up the next day. I found out that these units will charge better in an electrical outlet then with a solar charge.

Arcada is where Humboldt State University is, and it is obvious a college town. The University sat right across the highway from the town of Arcada. When Mike and I were on our bike trip to Canada, he wanted to drop by the Administration Office to make sure he was all set to start classes in the Fall of this year. Mike was excited about moving into a new chapter in his life. It was a nice campus, next to a nice town, and it was close to the Pacific Ocean and the Redwoods. I am sure he thought about having an exciting and rewarding career in the Forestry Service. Mike was the perfect match for this type of career.

Evening Entry

Doubt always plays in my mind mostly during my dream time. This happens to those, or can happen when to those taking a giant leap in their careers to a totally different direction. Doing something with little support, and simply based on wanting to hopefully make a difference in the world. Moving in a direction that is not the norm in our culture. Basically moving backwards in time, living in nature – not knowing the outcome. And how long can I do this financially?

Making the decision to camp in state campgrounds may not have been the right way of doing this due to the expense. But the convenience made sense to me as with the safety factor vs. staying in a Forest Service campground or even boon docking. If I wasn’t doing it in a tent and chose a camper, I may have done it differently, but maybe not. It just made sense to go with state park campgrounds. The basic needs of a safer place, water, toilets, showers, a picnic table, and garbage disposal made life easier. Also usually being closer to a town or city for resupply. We were also staying at each campground for one to two weeks (usually two weeks) that made more sense staying at a state park campground that was usually well maintained. And because we were camping in the off season these campgrounds weren’t that busy, so we could enjoy some peace and quiet usually.

Heading north back towards our camp, I decided to check out Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park as a possibility to stay at. I stopped at the Camp Host’s trailer and talked with him on what I was looking for. I don’t think he was really listening to me and was not much help. I drove through the section of campground that was open, and though it was nice, with a small creek running through it, the campsites were really small and wouldn’t fit my truck and trailer, or our large tent. I thought that was a big disappointment.

When we were pulling out to leave the park, I heard a honking behind me, so I pulled over, and it was Mike and Dundee. The boys got very excited to see them, as was Dundee to see us. I was surprised to see Mike. He said he was leaving on Saturday or Sunday. But if we choose to stay there he may stay another week. He showed me a spot next to him where we could camp, but it was far from ideal. It was in the open to the meadow where the elk grazed. Mike said it was a great place to watch the elk. I did like that idea, but that was it. We would be totally exposed to the rain, and wind. Mike had the comforts of a trailer with all its comforts. In an ideal situation weather wise, it could have been nice.

I decided to pass on this campground. Our next option was just to head for Oregon. Mike said, he was heading for Brookings, to the Harris Beach State Park, roughly a two and a half hour drive from where we were. It was just across the border from California and Oregon. I told him we might see him there, and for him to check out some suitable campsites for us.

I will begin prepping for our departure for Monday, with an option to stay another day if we get rain on Monday. Hopefully they will let us stay one more day if we need it.

It took us about a half hour to get to Prairie Creek, and on the way back to camp we stopped at the small market in Trinidad for some dinner and gas. It was pretty chilly at around 4:00 pm. Last night at 7:00 pm, it was 40 deg. and windy. Tonight it was 40 deg. at 7:00 pm with no wind, and very pleasant. At the same temperature, it can be very comfortable or very miserable with rain or wind.

The rain is suppose to come in early morning. Between the rains on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday we will be planning our get-a-way to our next new campground in Oregon.

February 24, 2018 – Saturday

We woke to 44 deg. this morning, with light rain showers. It began around 5:00 am with light rain showers off and on.

I got the fire going, and the coffee perking. Thinking, should I fix breakfast or not? We have to drive to Arcata to pick up my iPad and I would like to get an early start if I can.

One of those things I enjoy on this journey, is sipping a hot cup of coffee, breathing in the fresh air of nature, sitting next to a campfire, and just being in nature with the boys. These are special moments for me. And on wet days like this, occasional drops falling on the pages of my journal, making ink splotches on the pages of the journal. I then I know it is time to stop writing.

The rain once again started falling.

We have experienced a lot of rain, hail, and wind in this camp. It can make it challenging, but it can also provide amazing beauty.

Afternoon Entry

It is 4:30 pm, 45 deg. out, with a bit of wind. I can see the blue sky, and Sun. I can still feel the cold. But it is a nice break.

I got my errands done in Arcata. The weather cooperated with us.

It is hard to find parking in this small town of Arcata, but I was able to find a parking place right in front of the Apple Store. I came out with a fully charged iPad. I then dropped off the wood pallet to the firewood supplier, then onto Safeway. I know Safeway is a rip off in general, but this is plain ridiculous. Safeway charges $10.00 for a bottle of propane, in other places they sell for $5.99, and as low as $2.99.

Evening Entry

There is a lot of moisture in the air just by exhaling of my breath. I have not experienced the cold too much so far because of my clothing, and as with good sleeping gear. And having a nice campfire. I even like the crispness of the cold being in nature. The boys love it. The colder it gets the better they like it. The cold seems to give them bursts of energy.

The sky is clear, but the clouds are moving in quickly. We have a chance of showers tonight.

The boys and I took our evening walk. I could smell the salty ocean air, mixed with the smells of the forest. The rains always brings out these lovely scents of nature.

I received a call from Mike, and they will be headed into Oregon tomorrow. Mike will let me know how Harris Beach State Park is.

Still thinking about staying at Prairie Creek, but it is really a bad idea, especially if we get bad weather which we will. We would have no protection. I think I am obsessed with the idea of the elk being in the meadow and so close to us.

Technically I am suppose to leave on Sunday. My maximum 14 days are up then. The ranger at the kiosk will give me another day, so the plan is to leave on Monday, and hopefully it won’t be raining.

February 25, 2018 – Sunday

I slept pretty well last night. We woke up to 40 deg. and no rain thus far. I didn’t hear any rain through the night. Looking through the tent window openings, on one side I saw gray skies, on the other side, I saw blue skies. When we got up I saw both having a better view of the sky, it was still hard to determine what the weather was going to do. When living in nature in a tent, weather is a big part of the equation. In one minute, we can have clear skies, enjoying the warmth of the Sun, and in the next moment, it can be a down pour of hail or rain. It makes us more aware of our outside environment. It determines what we can, and cannot do. It was nice to wake up to no rain, so we could enjoy the morning rituals of maybe having a campfire, enjoying my coffee, a nice cooked breakfast, writing in my journal, and just being in nature.

Unexpected thoughts come to mind much more when alone in nature, or just being alone. We experience reflections of our past. I just had a memory come to me about being in an Art class in college and we were working with a new medium, acrylics. I have used charcoal, pastels, and gouache, and now acrylic paints. We never got into oils in the course because it took to long to dry. We were learning the tonal scales of the grays, between white and black. I just wanted to get into the painting stuff, and of course using color, but soon realized the exercises the teacher was putting us through were important skills that should be learned. In the beginning, we never used colors. It was always using black and white, and the shades of gray.

This process is similar in our better understanding of nature. To have a better understanding of nature, we should first observe nature. To explore self awareness within oneself. We then discover the magnificent beauty and wonders in nature. This allows all of our senses to come alive in all nature provides. An invisible painting comes alive through our senses and awareness to the natural world. We notice light and dark, shades, textures, shapes, shadows, depths of field, smells, and touch – we become aware of so many different compositions that play out everywhere we look, whether in nature or in the civilized world. The skills I learned in Art and Photography has helped me see the world in a different reality. I refer to it as the seeing with the “Artist eye.”

It was also like that learning photography, by starting out, strictly in black and white images. I always enjoyed the challenges using black and white vs. color in my younger days. I saw the images through the lens in color, but also in black and white and shades of gray in my minds eye.

While packing up for our new camp, I still had about an eighth of a cord of wood left, so I will have to pack most of my gear in the trailer, and the wood in the truck bed.

February 26, 2018 – Monday

We experienced hail and rain all night. It was 38 deg. when we got up at 7:45 am, and clear skies. I was thinking this most likely won’t be a good day for moving camp, because the constant changing of weather that comes about here. Blue skies one minute, rain and hail the next. We drove to the kiosk to check on the weather, and talk with the ranger at the kiosk about one more day extension on our stay. She said she would ask. We drove to Trinidad to fill up the gas tank in the truck, and grabbed a cup of coffee. I then went back to camp and I noticed the skies still clear. It felt like a good day to travel to our next camp. Hopefully the weather will be nice at the other end. So I decided we would leave today. The packing up went smoothly, and got everything packed including our firewood, got the trailer hitched to the truck, got the boys in the truck (they are always excited to head on the road for a new adventure), and we departed at 11:15 am.

We stopped by the kiosk, thanked the ranger for all there help, and told her we would be on our way.

I decided we would head for Oregon, and meet Mike and Dundee at Harris Beach State Park. Being pleased with our timing, I estimated we would arrive at our new camp in Oregon at around 1:30 pm. Driving along Hwy 101, the traffic was almost non-existent, and it was a beautiful drive along the coast line. We did see a small herd of elk along the side of the road that was a treat to see. I realized I did forget to grab the boy’s lead lines and was not to happy about that. They are not cheap. I will have to pick up a pair in Brookings.

On one late morning, I heard the sound of a helicopter hovering near by and I thought maybe someone was being rescued near the rugged cliffs of the coastline. I saw a Coast Guard helicopter flying over Wedding Rock and some rescuers on the rock. They were doing a mock rescue.

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 6

continues

Part Six

February 6, 2018 – Tuesday – Richardson Grove State Park, CA

We got up a little after 7:00 am, I took the boys for a quick walk, then began packing up. We then said our good byes to Mike and Mr. Dundee, and wished them well. We were on the road around 10:30 am. This should give us good timing to reach Richardson Grove, find a campsite, and get camp at least partially set up which would be the tent.

We filled the gas tank of the truck at upper Clear Lake, and we were on our way. We hit very little traffic heading north, and it was a very pleasant drive.

When we got on Hwy 101 north, I wanted to see if I noticed anything familiar from when a friend, Mike and I rode through this area on our ten-speed bikes on our way to Canada back in 1973, I believe. It was a big adventure for us.

I met Mike through another friend who’s name was, Mike. We all went to Chabot College in the San Francisco Bay Area together. I would bump into Mike occasionally at college, and he asked if I was interested in going for a drive somewhere. He had a tiny Fiat sports car convertible. It was so small it only had a 5 gallon gas tank. I don’t remember where we drove to, but it was a fun drive, and I got to know Mike better. He was a very soft spoken, and easy going guy. The next time we met outside of college, we took a bike ride through the countryside near where we lived, on a beautiful rural road with little traffic – a perfect area for a pleasant and relaxing bike ride. Mike was telling me he would work for the forest service in the summers putting out forest fires, and he would meet people touring on bicycles, usually traveling from south to north into Canada. Bicycle touring was becoming pretty popular during that time. I had never heard about it before. Thinking about it, and imagining it, I said to Mike, “lets do it!” And he responded immediately with an exciting, yes! So began our planning for our exciting adventure. In July, we headed north from Vallejo, just north of the San Francisco bay area, and our plan was to reach Victoria Island, BC, Canada.

We had a time frame to get back before school started in September. Mike would be going to Humboldt State University, for a degree in Forestry, and I would continue on for my third year at Chabot College, and eventually to San Jose State University to get my BA degree in Graphic Design.

It took us three weeks to get to Canada (with a little cheating from a friend who drove us from Eureka, CA to Coos Bay, OR). We had a short stay of two or three days on Vancouver Island, then the ferry back to Seattle, where we hopped on a smelly Greyhound bus for our return home, a long and horrible 24 hour ride, where Mike and I slept most of the way back home. I was trying to convince Mike to hop freight trains back, but he did not like the idea much. That probably would have been an adventure in its self and probably not really a good idea. Although in my mind it sounded like it would be a great adventure riding the rails illegally, like in the days of the Hobos, during the depression times. Years later I was listening to a story on NPR about a writer who did just that. He took to the rails of the freight trains, traveling wherever they took him. I was reflecting on this, and how this could have been us – two adventures back to back. I am sure Mike was just thinking about getting back in readying himself for a new adventure at HSU. I could see Mike being a fine ranger. I thought it fit him, and his personality well.

I never saw Mike again, I did talk with him years after on the phone, and he never did become a ranger. It was very difficult to get in because it seemed many others had that dream as well. I thought Mike would have a good chance with his experiences fighting wildfires. But it was not to be, and a great loss for the forest service. Mike ended up working for the Prison system at San Quentin State Prison, a high security prison in the SF bay area. A very unlikely place for such a great guy who loved being in nature. During his stay there, he was stabbed by a prisoner, and luckily he was okay. He was trying to transfer to a work camp for convicts in the mountains, and the last time I spoke with him, he did make it to a prisoner work camp in the Sierra Nevada mountains. I hadn’t spoke to him since. I miss his special friendship.

Going through this area again, brought back many memories of our bike trip to Canada.

We arrived at Richardson Grove at 2:00 pm and I was happy with our arrival time. It gave me a couple of hours to set up camp while the boys watched me do all the work. The truck and trailer did great as well with no problems.

We pulled into the entrance gate, and drove to the Madrone campground, the only campground open, and to figure out the camping sites here that were available that would work out best for us. We drove through, looking for a suitable camping spot. The campground was pretty much empty of campers. The campsites seemed very small with limited pull in space for the truck and trailer. The more sites I saw, the more I was getting concerned in finding a campsite. I thought I would have to find another campground. They have three family campgrounds, and one group campground. Three of them are closed during the winter, which leaves only a limited amount of campsites available in the family camping area. And the choices obviously are limited.

I finally found a site with parking that would work, having the truck and trailer side by side, and an area I thought was large enough for the tent. Once the site was selected, I unpacked a few things, unhitched the trailer, then went back to the main entrance to pay for our site for two nights. I was not sure how long we would stay here.

The boys relaxing in their new camp, while taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of their new surroundings

I realized it would take me some time to learn the ins and outs on how each campground works. It helps if the campgrounds have a Camp Host there that can answer any questions. I would also soon learn that during the winter months that at least 50%, if not more of the campground campsites were closed in the off season. This made me think to always leave on a Sunday or Monday for the next campground to insure we could find a suitable site to camp.

After paying for our two nights, it was getting close to 3:00 pm, and I had to still set up camp. I usually goes pretty fast getting the tent up and our bedding in, ready for sleep when the time comes. We have been losing daylight around 6:00 pm, but since we are in the Redwoods it will be getting darker earlier. My goal is to never set up camp in the dark, in the rain, or the wind. I usually try to get the stove ready on our first day, for coffee in the morning. I usually don’t cook on our first night. With breaking camp, driving, and setting up a new camp all in the same day, I am pretty tired and don’t want to mess with cooking. And give me time to settle into our new camp. What I don’t get done, considering the boys do nothing in helping me, I finish the rest of what I have to do on the next day. It gives us some time to explore as well.

Back at camp I began setting up our tent and the spot I selected was too small. There was an open area next to our site, so I used that. I assumed it was part of our campsite, but I wasn’t absolutely sure. The Camp Host and his wife stopped by, and I asked him if it was okay to put the tent there? He said, “that was fine.” His name was Mike too. Lots of Mike’s in the world it seems. I forgot his wife’s name.

Mike, our Host was very nice, and easy going. I told him we were headed for Alaska, and he gave me a, must have travel guide book going up there. They are pretty expensive, but a need-to-have guide while driving up to Alaska.

A camper pulled in a little later, right next to my camp, but far enough away hopefully not to be a bother. It was nice here, with the exception of traffic noise that was an issue for me. We were just above Hwy 101 that was surprisingly busy. The site we were in wasn’t too bad. The campsites had pretty good separation from each other. The restrooms were a short walk just above us. I had learned we can stay here for a month as an option. I will feel this place out tomorrow, and determine how long I want to stay here. I will look for other options for our next campground. The other issue for staying here was resupplying. It was a good driving distance wise for resupplying. We may only stay for a few days.

The weather here was nice and being among the redwood landscape was an added plus.

I got the camp set up, and decided I would cook dinner for me and the boys. I also decided to have a little campfire. It soon became night time, it was 8:00 pm, and soon, it would be time for bed.

I am quickly discovering roots protruding above the ground, making it potentially dangerous if I trip over them. I will have to be very careful with every step I take, especially in the dark. I cannot take a chance in injuring myself in anyway. I am alone, and I am the only one to do the work, and in taking care of the boys. Even a small injury could be bad, making things extremely difficult. This is where, having a high degree of respect for nature comes into play. She comes with many beauties, and wonders, and dangers for those who don’t have a heightened awareness to their surroundings. I learned this quickly back in 2009, spending time alone in the wilderness with my dog, Shiloh. I also have to be aware of any potential dangers to Takota and Nanook.

February 7, 2018 – Wednesday

I slept pretty well, and as always, the boys always sleep soundly. The traffic noise sounds like the wind blowing and really couldn’t tell the difference in my half a sleep state. But I refer the sounds of the wind over the noise of automobiles, and trucks. During the day the traffic noise continues, and at night about 75%, deafening the silence of nature.

I woke up at 6:40 am, and went back to sleep. We got up at 7:40 am. The crows were active, with their different calls, then with the Clear Lake crows. I wonder why this was? I heard another bird, or two, but cold not tell what they were. It sounded like one was fighting with the crows.

It was a little chilly, and foggy this morning. The trees are fairly dense that surrounds the camp, mostly the beautiful old growth redwoods.

The boys and I took a walk down to the Eel River, taking the road down part way, then a dirt trail through the redwoods that eventually opened up to the shore of the Eel River. On our the way back to camp, we also checked out the old rustic building of the Visitor Center, that was originally the Richardson Grove Lodge. The old building blends well with the majestic redwoods. It was a nice walk. I can see why my Dad like taking the family here each year.

Back at camp I was messing around with the stove, so I could make my coffee and breakfast. I did get it working. I made a nice warming campfire and sat next to it while writing in my journal. I am using a Coleman stove, using liquid gas. I also have a backup Coleman propane stove that is brand new and never been out of the box. I do prefer the liquid gas for better control of heat, but losing my confidence in all Coleman products.

Because we are in a forest of redwoods, there are a lot of roots above the ground, and protruding rocks that can easily trip one up. I seem to find them each time I walk in the campsite.

I am not going to describe the campsite, except for it being in a beautiful redwood grove.

Before I was born, my family would come here often. My Dad would fly fish on the South Fork Eel River, that ran along the eastern side of Hwy 101 – or the Redwood Hwy. They had campgrounds on both sides of the Highway. On the east side there was the lodge that is now a Visitor Center. At the time, they had dancing for the camping guests at the lodge. During the evenings the outside stage entertained the camping guests as well. My Dad would get up on stage to tell stories or do skits with fellow campers. I wish I could have experienced those time. He would then take the family to see the Roosevelt Elk just north of Robertson Grove, and visit old friends. Our Dad died when I was four, and I only have a few memories of him. I was too young to fully understand why he was no longer with us. I am sure he is with us now to experience this beautiful place in the redwoods that he so loved.

The first known inhabitants of this region were the Sinkyone people, who hunted, fished in the rivers, and ocean, and gathered from the plants, and trees for food and medicine. They lived sustainably among the Grove’s ancient redwoods, which they considered as sacred. Sinkyone descendants still maintain cultural and spiritual ties to the Grove. But nothing like it was prior to the white man’s intrusion into California when the genocide began. They were treated like any other Indian, as savages, and lower than animals, and even had scalp bounties on men, women, and children throughout the state of California. All the California native people were referred to as “Diggers.” It was a local variant of the so-called “Ignoble Savage.”

This area is known as the Lost Coast, the ancestral lands of the Sinkyone people. It is an area of wild coast lines, beaches, headlands, meadows, marshes, and in the thick redwood forests that can be immersed in fog much of the year. This is on the southern edge of a coastal temperate rainforest ecosystem – the Cosadia Bioregion – that extends all the way into Alaska. The cornerstone species of this ecosystem is the Pacific Salmon, as with the redwoods that in recent decades has been threatened by man who was consumed with the taking of natural resources out of pure greed, and giving nothing back. Having little concern for the impact they were having on the whole ecosystem. They had no relationship to the land, or to life, as the native people had, and still have.

In this pristine landscape we should also be mindful, and acknowledge that it is the ancestral homelands of the indigenous Sinkyone peoples, who live on, and have sustainably managed this region for thousands of years.

Much of the last two centuries has been a tragic story for the native people here who have suffered the horrors of cultural genocide, and atrocities perpetrated by the European settlers and military throughout this country, that is referred to as the United States.

For millennia, the Sinkyone people of northern California (named for “Sinkikok” – their name for the Eel River watershed) lived in the mountainous, fertile,and rugged coastline region 150 mile north of San Francisco Bay area. Prior to European contact, they would winter inland along the South Fork of the Eel river, and travel in the summer to the coast to gather fish, acorns, berries, seaweed, kelp, roots, nuts. and seeds.

As part of their sustainable practices, they would rotationally burn coastal prairies and woodlands to maintain the health and productivity of the ecosystem. This caring for the land insured for sustainable hunting, and gathering of edible, and medicinal plants. They saw all life as sacred, and practiced ceremony, dances, songs, and prayer practices to give thanks for what they had received from nature, and the Creator. The Redwood tree (called “Kahstcho” in Sinkyone) was considered especially sacred, and was used used to create baskets, fish traps, canoes, houses, and clothing.

There were approximately 70 villages by the time of European contact.

With the start of the California gold rush in the 1850s, the Sinkyone, along with many other tribes, were massacred in less than two decades in the state. Mining, logging, and land theft was also a major contributor, as with the scalping, and death of men, women, and children for a sizable bounty. The end goal was to kill the Indian. These intruders were ruthless to the land, and to life, whether human or animal.

The Sinkyone, and other tribes in the area are key players in saving this pristine ecosystem.

Many of the old growth redwoods are more than a 1000 years old, and some are more than 300 feet tall. Other trees that make their home here are the Douglas -fir, California bay laurel, and various oaks.

Our camp was within the mighty ancient redwoods that provided the shade to our campsite, and with very little sunlight coming through. Maybe not the best thing for the winter months, but I am sure it was welcomed in the heat of the summer months. It also gave a magical energy, and beauty for those who could appreciate it through being silent and experiencing the feelings of this energy the forest did provide to those opened to it. Most people have lost this connection to silence. The native people knew this well through their deep relationship with the land, the water, the air, and to all life.

The boys found refuge in the bushes around camp. Takota would find hiding places within the shrubs.

While writing in the journal this moment, I had about 15 seconds of quiet I fully appreciated until the traffic noise began once again. Unfortunately it is what it is.

I found more roots and rocks to trip over in camp. I will have to try and pay attention to where I walk, and in every step I take.

In camp three Juncos came into our camp for a visit. It was nice to see them.

Afternoon Entry

We went to Garberville, and then to Redway, which was 2 miles further northwest from Garberville, on advisement from a cute young lady that I was talking with on a road side gift shop. On the way to Garberville, I kept an eye out for any road side firewood for sale, but didn’t see any, so I ended up buying some expensive firewood in Garberville, at the market and picked up some wine, and ice, then headed back to camp. I did make some calls for firewood on a bulletin board outside of the market with no luck. I also bought a bundle of firewood at the campground that was even more expensive than the market in Garberville. Going through both towns brought back memories when Mike and I were on our bike trip. I remember us stopping at the market in Garberville for some food and drink. I think we may have also stayed at Richardson Grove campground for one night, if I recall.

During our time here, I was not aware of a place called Murder Mountain which is a place outside of the town, and in a remote area in the mountains, where even the Sheriffs Department stayed away from. I learned of this place years later when I watched a documentary of the same name, “Murder Mountain,” in 2023. In this place in Garberville, this out of the way, quiet hippy community in the middle of the serene ancient forests of northern California, within the beautiful and magical redwoods that had become one of the largest, and thriving communities of growers of illegal cannabis. It brought into this community young people finding work in this prosperous and very illegal industry, that has also brought unsolved missing persons, and murders, that the law enforcement chose to ignore.

While I was here, I only saw it as a place to camp, get gas, firewood, and food. It is a sleepy type community that came alive during the summer tourist season, a hippie type commune, and place where those who want to hide, can. For me, I also saw this place as the native people had seen it for thousands of years, a sacred place full of beauty, wonder, and life. We never had any issues here that would have endanger us. I actually felt less safe in Clearlake, while going into town to shop, as far as any theft of my things in the truck.

I paid for another two nights, and will stay on additional nights so we can leave on Sunday. Tomorrow we will look around at Humboldt Redwood State Park as an option to stay there. It would be nice to stay in this beautiful area to explore the redwoods, but we are on somewhat of a schedule. Patrick’s Point State Park looks like a good possibility also, and it would take us further north.

The Native people who live in this area sees this place as sacred. A concept most of white America cannot grasp. In the many touristy spots in America, it is all about visiting them, oohing and aahing at these natural wonders, then hopping in the car to see the next place or do the next thing on the list of things to do. We never take the time to feel the sacredness of all that we see. We can learn from the native peoples what sacred means in nature. Most Americans just know what the idea of site seeing is. We see everything only on the surface of what we perceive. Never allowing us to go deep within, and discovering our true relationship with the natural world. This is why I am on this journey, to see nature in a new reality from what we have been taught.

I may question my ability in writing. I may not be a great writer, or even a good writer, but to me, it is a form I can express my thoughts and feelings about. It can be a gift for me at times.

I think and convey some of the minor challenges I am facing such as the difficulty of finding campsites that work for us, or the perfect campsite, or not being able to find good sources of affordable firewood, or finding block ice, or camping in campgrounds in the off season, and being so expensive, or better discounts for seniors. But nothing is perfect, we all face challenges that we can learn from, to adjust and adopt to each circumstance as it comes. And look at it as an adventure. Embrace those challenges, as teachers. Embrace every moment. No matter how much I may complain, I love the experiences we are having in nature, and experiencing this journey with my special companions, Takota and Nanook.

It is now 7:30 pm, and it comes with a very peaceful and pleasant February evening, sitting next to a small campfire.

February 8, 2018 – Thursday

Laying in bed, looking out into the majestic redwoods, and for a few precious moments, I hear the sounds of silence. The sounds of peaceful, and quiet silence, where no noise from cars, trucks, motor homes or RV’s come. Only the peaceful stillness of nature, and the morning fog slowly weaving among the redwood giants.

I slept well through the night.

The morning fog soon turns to blue skies before I have my first sip of coffee.

The boys and I took a morning walk around the campground to check out the campsites. Most are pretty nice for a small tent, and one vehicle. I spotted an individual raven perched on a branch just observing us. I haven’t seen many birds. Mostly crows and a single raven, and of course the Juncos that visited our camp yesterday. I did hear a Steller’s jay this morning.

In the morning we get a sliver of sunlight penetrating through the thick forest canopy into our camp. These thin streams of light exposes the many weaving’s of spider webs that are otherwise hidden from sight within the low light of the forest floor. The smoke from the campfire reveals the beams of light through the trees.

After breakfast we will take a drive up north to check out the Humboldt Redwood State Park.

Afternoon Entry

We checked out Humboldt Redwood State Park. What I saw were very small campsites, and not enough room for our my tent, and the parking of the truck and trailer. So hopefully we will have better luck at Patrick’s Point State Park. It can always be a shot in the dark finding a campsite that works for us.

Once we returned to camp I saw the culprits who were in our camp yesterday. They saw us and flew off to a nearby branch to observe the situation. And once they saw the boys they high tailed it off.

In the campground, I picked up some wood that was left at a campsite. It was recently cut, and some pieces were a little wet, but thought I would give it a try. I thought it might take over some hot coals. I wasn’t sure of the type of wood. Also the camp next to us, some wood was dumped, so I picked out the driest pieces and brought it back to camp. The wood burned well that I gathered. Nothing like free wood.

Some times one might find a log or two, in the campsites, and other times enough for a few days of fire. Firewood was like gold to me. It was an important part of our life in nature that gave warmth and a sense of comfort. In the olden days, it was part of survival. For the native people all around the world, fire was seen a sacred. It was a part of the four elements of life; air, water, earth, and fire. In our modern materialistic world, most have forgotten this. We see materialism and money as sacred, and not the very thing that gives life in the natural world. Nature has just become an after thought for so many of us.

Last night in bed with lights out it became pitch black in the tent and outside. Before bed, we went for a walk around the campground loop. There was only one other camper here besides us. I had my headlamp on high, and getting closer to the other camper I wanted to drop the bright light to lower setting as not to blind out the other camper. I turned the headlamp off and quickly realized I was blind. There was nothing but pure empty darkness without my only source of light. I thought, what if my light all of a sudden went out? How would I find our way back to camp? We wouldn’t unless we yelled for help. And would the only other person in the campground hear us? I thought I would then put the boys to the test. Could they take me back to camp? Unfortunately they failed right off the bat. It was kind of a frightening thought to be stranded in darkness. After that experience, so I always brought a backup light source with me.

February 9, 2018 – Friday

I have noticed in the past few of nights, my dreams have moved from the old me that once was, to the new me that is now. What I mean by this is the recent dreams are about our journey into nature. I had a lot of dreams about still being in Architecture and not being able to let go of this past. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy the creative part of Architecture, but I thought my focus would be better served experiencing my attention in the natural world – in a world most have forgotten.

I just had a thought, what if the first two or three years of schooling were focused on learning and experiencing in nature more, and using reading, writing, and art to compliment those experiences? In spending time observing the natural world. During my time in school, our understanding of nature was very limited in having a full understanding of the natural world. And it still is for the most part in teaching, and maybe worse. The children are being prepped to pass required exams, then on really learning. We are taught to be productive citizens in our progressive society. To be robots to our society that is all based on materialism. Understanding nature has no purpose in the delusional world of consumerism, and materialism that we have created. Through these teachings, it should also include the teachings and wisdom of traditional indigenous peoples of the world.

It is nice waking up to the redwoods. Listening to the sounds, in smelling the smells, and seeing the sights nature brings to us.

We got up around 7:45 am. The morning sky was covered in fog that drapes over the tops of the redwood trees. The foggy mist soon began to dissipate at 9:00 am, slowly burning off as the Sun rose higher in the sky.

On our morning walk I found a real nice campsite in our area of the campground, and maybe the one I tried to get into on the first day, but the truck and trailer just wouldn’t fit in the parking area of the site. I would have had less traffic noise, more room, and more sunlight at that site. And maybe, I would want to stay here longer.

Walking back to camp a doe appeared walking quietly towards our camp, then she moved in the opposite direction when she saw us moving closer towards her. I tried to stay a safe distance away, but the doe probably wanted no part of us.

In camp a bird flew low off the ground, maybe five feet above the surface. It may have been a woodpecker. I also saw a couple of robins earlier this morning. It is nice seeing the wildlife that are here. It feels we are a part of this natural environment. I try to show respect for their presence here, and appreciate the very beings in who they are. I believe if we show respect, and an appreciation for all life, we will experience a deeper relationship with nature, and to all life.

For those who are reading this, I am sure some or most would see this as being pretty boring. And for many it would be, because we have forgotten how to experience the beauty that is in the stillness in its simplest forms in nature. In just experiencing the beingness, and in the appreciation in all things, our perceptions change in how we see and relate to the natural world. My fellow companions, Takota, and Nanook, also helps me gain that sense of calm.

In getting the morning fire going was being stubborn, but it finally took.It takes a bit of patience at times to get a fire going in the winter. Unless one uses gasoline as a starter, which I don’t like to do. We have a greater appreciation, and respect for fire when we start a fire slowly and methodically.

While fixing breakfast I heard a raven on a branch next to camp. It must be one of the ones who comes to visit us. Is he or she talking to us, or to a fellow raven? I then notice it’s partner on another branch squawking away to it’s fellow companion. They may have been hoping for an invite for breakfast.

After breakfast, I had notices both the ravens were gone. They knew there were other campers around to mooch on. But I am sure they were near by, waiting for us to leave camp, so they might find any food left behind. But seldom find in our camp.

We are now the only ones here in the campground. The benefits of camping in the winter.

The weather has been perfect for our liking, with a little bit of a chill always in the air in winter. The scent in the air is always sweet, and fresh.

Afternoon Entry

The boys and I took a drive to the river, and enjoyed a walk through the redwoods, and along the river. Since I had pack of cigarettes with me from Clear Lake for the sole purpose of giving offerings and prayer, I thought I would say a prayer and an offering to the spirits in the forest with the tobacco. I wasn’t sure what to say, and felt a little uncomfortable doing it, but I just tried to feel the prayer. My first tobacco, and prayer offering came very natural to me. I felt a deep peace within. It brought me deeper into the life of the forest.

During this time, I was able to reflect on my Dad who loved this place. Imaging him fly fishing in the jade colored river of the Eel. Wondering what it would have been like if he was able to have a longer life? And what would my life had been with him around. I am sure he is with me on this journey. As being the youngest, I was very fortunate to have had all my siblings as a support system. I was only four years old, when he left us. I must have been too young to notice any grieving from our family from our loss. It did effect our Mom in the long term. And I am sure it effected all of us whether we knew it or not. My oldest brother took on the role of the father figure.

It seemed our two raven friends were tagging along with us. I saw them at the picnic area during our walk. Was it them following us?

There was a lone tree standing in the picnic area. It might be an oak tree. Most of the leaves were gone, showing it’s skeleton. The trunk and branches covered in moss, and it’s branches draped over in lichen, that is also referred to Old man’s beard. This one tree found it’s place among the redwoods, standing alone as a beacon.

As I caught a glimpse of a raven silently gliding and weaving with grace through the subdued darkness of the redwoods close to camp, I too experienced a beingness among these magnificent giants as this raven has in it’s awareness, that brings me to a place of oneness, and peace, and silence within. The majestic redwoods bring a mystery, and story with them that few ever experience.

Evening Entry

It seems a few new campers are coming into the campground. We saw two campers, and two cabins rented.

It is a beautiful evening, along with a pleasant temperature. We begin getting camp packed up, ready for our departure on Sunday.

February 10, 2018 – Saturday

We got up around 7:45 am, we went for our morning walk. There were five additional campers here. Two of them had river boats.

The morning had an awakening chill in the air, a crisp freshness to it that blended with the scent of redwoods filling the air.

As soon as we got back to camp from out walk, I got a fire going and the coffee brewing. I have enough firewood for this morning and tonight. I never did find any good firewood suppliers, so I scrounged enough around the campground for our needs.

When I get a campfire going in the morning, part of having the fire is smelling the pleasant aroma of the wood burning.

I found some mushrooms scattered around here and there. I don’t know the species, but I just enjoyed them being around.

It was a short stay here, but very pleasant overall, with the exception of the traffic noise and having good access to firewood.

When the ravens come to visit I can definitely hear the flapping of their wings.

I am definitely enjoying the experiences with the boys living in nature. Being with them 24/7 brings a deep closeness in our relationship together, with many more adventures to come.

In Dr. Wayne Dyer’s book that I am reading, he talks about slowing down, and being mindful of this. And I am slowing down, but I also find myself rushing around, having to do this and that. My past life I was always rushing, always having to get stuff done. It was part of my profession in the field of Architecture. And now I am in the field of being in nature that requires me in slowing down to a slower pace.

We tend to look for the big things in life to give us joy and happiness, to give us that feeling of love inside of us, to give us some kind of purpose in life. But for so many of us, we miss those simple things that can give us the pure joy, and love, and purpose we search for in our lives. This is where we need to go deep within in finding it. An example of this is an experience I just had not long ago:

I usually put a paper towel on a portion of the picnic table. The paper towel had an imprint on it of a Christmas scene and bears playing in the snow. When I looked at these images of the trees, and bears, I experienced a warmth of joy inside of me. It brought back fond and joyful memories of Christmas when I was young. And feelings I am experiencing being in the woods with the boys. To me, these are magical moments, so simple and yet full of feelings of love, and joy.

This experience may seem silly to many, but it is about those simple things that give us unexpected joy in our hearts that cannot be compared to with those big things we would wish to happen in our lives. We can only experience these things being in the state of pure consciousness, in the present moment.

In my exploration in looking for different plant species, I have not yet had the opportunity to try wood sorrel, but when I came across some at this camp, I picked a few for a little taste. It had a very nice flavor, with a slight tartness to it. I then thanked the plant for this gift.

Besides the premeditated thievery of the pair of ravens, I have not heard or noticed any night time goings on with any other critters that uses the darkness of night for their cover to rob camps. I heard the ravens checking on other campsites. I saw one fly by our camp, and one stopping next to our camp for a look see, then flew off. I really don’t mind them, I enjoy their company.

The traffic isn’t that bad today, it is quieter than usual. It is easier to experience silence without all of a traffic noise, and just experience the sounds of nature and the silence within.

If one follows their heart, just following the heart towards those things that guides us, that gives us joy, and love, we realize this is all we really want. It will bring us one with spirit, with the Creator, and a close relationship with all life. These are magical moments that stay with us all of our lives.

Evening Entry

I have been thinking about my Dad, I wish I was able to spend more time with him, in having more memories with him. I am not sure if Dad believed in any higher power, but I know he felt this place had special magic to him. The last time I saw him, my niece Lynda and I saw him leave for work. He never returned. I was only four years old, my niece was three.

I had a drink of some Chardonnay this evening, and shared a little bit from my plastic cups with Nanook. He seemed to like it. Takota wanted nothing to do with it.

On our last night here, it has been the coolest day here so far.

Our friends the junco came by to say good bye. Tomorrow we continue heading north on our journey in nature.

We will get an early start on Sunday for our drive to our next campground. It should take a little over 2 hours to get there. There are Safeway’s at Eureka and Arcata for our food shopping. The weather looks really good for breaking up camp and setting up camp, and for travel. Another adventure camping in nature.

In watching Takota, and Nanook, I observe their different personalities. They argue in their own ways as siblings, as brothers, and love each other. Both prefer their own spaces, but there are times Takota will lay next to his brother. And they share this love with me in every moment. With each morning, usually early, they come to greet me, and I give them loving scratches and rubs. Then the boys return to their beds and we go back to sleep for a few more winks. Although Takota is the alpha, that Nanook typically ignores, Takota needs is brother. He would be lost without him.

They provide me with much loving comfort. Being with them 24/7 gives us an inseparable bond with one another. Where ever we find ourselves in our travels in nature, we always feel we are home although it may look different. Each new camp, the boys experiencing different smells, and familiar ones when the first arrive. They both resume their roles in each camp with Takota being the camp protector, and Nanook being the hunter. And as always, they are usually very quiet and relaxed in camp.

February 11, 2018 – Sunday

We got up and 7:00 am, I got everything packed up in two hours, and on the road at 9:00 am. I figured we would have about a two and a half hour north to our next campground at Patrick’s Point State Park.

Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 5

Part Five

Our Journey Continues

January 10, 2018 – Wednesday – Clear Lake State Park, CA

We decided to leave today, rain or shine. I was antsy to get back on the road again – to be back on our journey in Nature.

I enjoyed our stay with my dear sister. The boys and I will miss her.

I wanted to get on the road by 10:30 am, and ended up leaving at

11:30 am. I spent a little time with my sister talking. I could tell she did not want us to leave. It was a long time for us being apart. I also think she had a concern for us in what we were doing.

On our drive heading up north to Clear Lake, we did get a little rain on our short drive to Paradise, and then nicer weather the rest of our way to Clear Lake. I have only been to Clear Lake once with an old girlfriend. I did enjoy that part, but Clear Lake (Clearlake, the city) has always had a bad reputations for the pollution in the lake, as with the culture of people who lived there. It is the poorest county (Lake County) in the state. But it seemed to be our best option heading north, so we took the chance. And if we didn’t like it we would just leave.

We had to do a little back tracking going south, then west to get to Hwy 29 north. I was not paying attention to where I was going and missed the exit to take me west to Hwy 29, so I drove until I could turn around, and wasted about 20 minutes driving time. I estimated getting to the campground around 3:30 pm, which I achieved. We hit little traffic on our 4 hour drive. I arrived in the town of Clearlake at 3:00 pm. Once we got to the campground, I then searched for a good campsite that would work for us. The campground was not that crowded which was nice. We picked a site next to the bathrooms, and the campsite gave us an enough room for the tent, the truck, the trailer, me, and the boys. It was a comfortable site with a view of the lake. I didn’t want to camp next to the lake, since these sites are the most popular, and so as not to get bumped by campers making reservations for those sites. The boys and I were excited to be camping again. It feels like we were back home, but with a different scenery.

I only had a short time to set up camp before dark. I found everything easily for the set up of the tent, without having to dig through all my stuff, and that saved some time and frustration. It would have been nice to have a campfire for our first night, but I was lacking the wood. For dinner I had a few Keto bars, and some leftover lamb that my sister gave me. And of course I shared the lamb with the boys.

There was a lot of moisture in the air that made it a chilly evening at 43 degrees. We also had some masked bandits in two trees in camp. The boys will keep a close watch on them.

A police officer dropped by camp and noticed we had not paid. I was actually going to pay the next day, but they do frown on that. He offered to take the payment envelope for me, and drop it in the drop box. He had a canine unit, so the officer enjoyed meeting the boys. He was a very friendly, and down to earth kind of guy. I like him immediately.

Although I have been doing a lot of camping, camping at different campgrounds is a little adjustment on what one can do, and can’t do as far as the campground rules go (which I seldom read), as with most people. And dealing with reservations which I won’t do. Although I did have to do at Del Valle because it was required. Many campgrounds usually have partial reservations, and non-reservations (first come for served) sites, or reservations only during peak season.

January 11, 2018 – Thursday

Soon after we went to bed last night, me and the boys heard a commotion right outside the tent. I wasn’t sure if it was the raccoons or some other critter. Most likely the raccoons. The boys got all excited, and I was hoping they would not damage the tent in their excitement. They soon calmed down, and all was good. The boys quickly fell back to sleep in their doggie slumber. There were other unknown sounds throughout the night I could not identify, among those was a great horned owl hooting in the dark night sky. In the morning I heard a hawk and I think an acorn woodpecker.

I had a hard time falling asleep last night from the excitement of camping again. We were really on our journey in Nature, and there was no turning back. I had nothing to back to. I was focused on heading to the beautiful, and wild Alaska of the north country. I finally fell asleep around 1:00 am or so, and slept pretty well the rest of the night. We didn’t get up until 9:00 am. It rained a bit during the night, a sporadic light rain that would come and go. I was hoping it wouldn’t become a steady rain where I would have to get up to close all the window flaps. I kept the screened windows open for fresh air, not knowing it would rain. A drop of moisture landed on the side of my face in the early morning from the screened opening next to my bed. I then watched for the rain that never came. The boys slept peacefully all night.

Once we got up, we went for a walk, then I fed the boys, unloaded the bed of the truck for our trip into town for supplies.

We went shopping for about three days worth of food, picked up some gas for the Coleman gas stove. And I found a place where we could get a load of firewood. We picked up about an 1/8th cord of hard firewood. It was nice finding a good supply of firewood if we stay longer.

The day was nice with clear skies and a little warmth from the winter Sun.

While unloading the truck of groceries, and firewood, a law enforcement park ranger stopped at our camp. I thought he might say something about the firewood I brought in, but instead he mentioned that the dogs could not have a restraint longer than 6 feet long. I had the boys on a high line with a 20 ft. leader attached to the high line so they would have a little room to run around. He warned me if I didn’t comply I would get a ticket. I grudgingly took the high line down and shortened the lead line, but not to 6 feet. I made it about 12 to 15 feet long. The Ranger said nothing after that, so I thought I would be okay with that length. I did not like these restrictions on my dogs, and I was thinking of packing up and finding another place to camp, although I did like this area, and we could stay for up to 30 days here. So I just dealt with no high line and a shortened lead line.

Evening Entry

We got a few drops of rain in the afternoon.

For dinner we had steak.

The boys and I took a walk along the lake for a little exploring before it got dark. It is a beautiful lake on the surface of it. At least what I could see of it. I thought about what it was like before the white settlers came here, during the time of the Native Americans who called this land their home.

Before dinner, a fellow camper dropped by for a friendly chat and a beer. The story he was telling me, I wasn’t sure I could believe, but just took it for what it was – a story.

After a nice meal for dinner, I sat next to a pleasant warming fire with the boys, enjoying the silence and peace in nature. The night sky glistens with an abundance of stars filling the sky. I am beginning to quickly settle down in our new environment and I thought, maybe we will stay a full month. We will see how it goes.

The raccoons are perched on the branches of a tree just outside of our camp, waiting for us to go to bed so they can see what tidbits of food they might find. They don’t know we are up to their tricks in invading camps, and we leave nothing for them to get their little hands on.

So far we have not had much wind, but it is still early to say what the weather will bring since we are camping in the middle of winter. I do enjoy hearing the winds blowing through the trees. It can be a soothing sound to hear while lying in bed.

This place that was once sacred to the native people here, was turned into a place the so-called civilized man simply used as they chose, with little regard for the harm they did to the natural environment, or for the original inhabitants. With no deep connection to what the land brings to our very being, and for our very survival. We have lost this deep connection, relationship, and respect for nature we once had many thousands of years ago. When was the turning point that we chose greed, self-indulgence, a hungering for the insatiable appetite for more, with little regard for the very thing that supported all life? Where we were willing to kill others of our same species, and to the natural world, to take for our thankless desires to have more, no matter what? Was it when we began believing we were superior over all life forms? And yet, there were also peoples who had a deeper understanding of our relationship to all creation, and to chose to live in harmony with all life.

January 12, 2018 – Friday

The pesky raccoons returned once again to our camp last night. They kept me awake while they attempted to get into our stuff. They did find their way into one ice chest where there was some ice in it, just by simply knocking it over. They were crunching away at the ice while keeping me awake. I am glad they enjoyed it. I have to keep the camp more food secure so to discourage critters from coming into our camp.

The past two mornings have been foggy. We got a light rain early this morning.

I didn’t cover the kindling wood, and it was wet, so splitting the wet wood to get underneath to the dry wood beneath was required. I also used some fire starting blocks to get the fire going. I could have also used some fatwood as an option, that I had plenty of in supply. I brought a lot of fire starting material with us so fire starting wouldn’t be a problem. I also practiced a lot of different fire starting skills I had in my fire starting toolkit prior to this journey.

Always a warming, and welcoming fire for the mornings and evenings

The police officer who we first met on our arrival here, stopped by to say hello, and to see how everything was going. We had a nice talk, and he was telling me there are bald eagle here, and occasionally bear, and elk.

It is 12:00 pm and we just finished breakfast. The Sun is trying to break through the fog. There are only two other campers left, besides me and the boys. One in a tent and the other in an RV.

The boys, and I went on a nice walk after breakfast. The Sun burned off the fog by then, and left us with a blue skies. On our walk I saw a sign indicating the type of fish, as with the crayfish in the area. I thought it might be nice to catch some crayfish. I brought traps with me. We ran into the police officer that made it an issue about my dogs being on a longer lease than 6 ft. While he was driving through, and I flagged him down to ask if I needed a fishing license for crayfish. He said yes, and he also mentioned to me, he wouldn’t recommend it because the lake has a high mercury content. This got me even more interested about this lake. It had many stories to tell of it’s past.

January 13, 2018 – Saturday

I had a pretty good night sleep, but it was a bit cold when I awoke this morning around 7:30 am. I peeked at the temperature and it was 34 degrees. It has been in the mid 40’s in mornings prior. A pretty good drop in temperature I would say. When we finally got up at 9:30 am it was 39 degrees. The first thing for this morning, the boys and I took our morning walk, then was to get a warming fire going. It is nice having a good supply of firewood at hand. For me, it is like gold. I am not sure what it will be like the further north we go. I always keep my eyes open for firewood signs along the road side. I try to avoid buying firewood in small bundles that they sell at the store, except for the use of kindling. It is a rip off buying 5 to 6 logs of pine that easily will burn in one lighting. Most everywhere charges $6.00 to $7.00 for a bundle of firewood.

It took a little work on getting a fire going because of the wood still being wet, but it finally took, providing warmth to the body, and calm to the spirit. Fire is one of the four elements in nature, and is seen as sacred to the indigenous native peoples. They know we cannot survive without it. As for the typical camper, there is no special relationship with fire, or air, or water, or the earth. It is just something we take advantage of, with no thought of the gifts they provide until we really need them. We don’t think about, or are grateful for the life giving forces that are part of the soup of life, for all life.

I got the coffee going, then some journaling, and then breakfast. A simple life, but a good life, and being able to share it with the boys. They provide a wonderful presence to the camp, and to me.

The night sky was clear with the glowing light of the stars against the darkness of the night sky. This morning we were welcomed with blue skies, no fog, and no wind.

Shortly after retiring to bed last night, the eerie sounds in nature began. It was like the ghosts, and goblins had awoken, rising from the darkness. The sounds I hear from the animals are unfamiliar to me, nothing I have heard before. They are the invisible voices of the night. Sometimes they are comical because they are so strange, as with being entertaining. The first sounds were a screeching from across the campground. It could have been an animal or some type of bird. Some times I am awakened by them. These night sounds of nature, can be scary for some, but for me, I enjoy them, they can be wondrous. We were experiencing more bird activity today. I did hear a flock of Canadian geese flying in last night, and this morning, a fox barking. It would be nice having audio equipment to capture these sounds of the night.

I was talking with Trevor, the police officer with the canine unit, and he was telling me a little bit about the history of the mercury mines next to the lake.

Evening Entry

We had a good salmon dinner tonight. The evening temperature is 47 degrees outside. It is very comfortable without the wind while enjoying a nice campfire.

Six or so new campers came in today, making it a total of about ten, including us. I was surprised there were so many for this time of year, and for the weather we have been getting. There was one campsite where the campers were pretty obnoxious.

I forgot to mention, every other day, we have to go to the campground kiosk first thing in the morning to pay our camping fee for two days, and to make sure our campsite has not been reserved. I don’t think most campers make reservations this time of year, but they make us go through this process. I always ask for a weather forecast while I am there.

January 14, 2018 – Sunday

It was 45 degrees this morning when I awoke at 7:00 am. It was another beautiful morning. My senses felt fully engaged with our environment. Sensing the trees all around us, hearing the birds with their morning calls, and songs, and smelling the sweet scent of nature.

This morning it was a bit windy, but not cold.

While laying in bed I look out in nature, a little doubt comes to mind, and I ask myself, “Why am I here? What is my purpose in doing this? Will it make any difference?” Friends tell me I am making a difference. They tell me I am planting seeds. They tell me that I am planting seeds in my Garden of Hope. It is not that I am not enjoying our experiences living in Nature so far. I love the simplicity of living in a tent, the experience, and gifts of having Takota and Nanook by my side. And just being in nature. I quickly banished the doubt with the healing powers that nature brings.

Looking out towards the lake, I see white caps. It has usually been as calm as glass.

It is 57 degrees, and warming at 9:30 am. We drove down to the campground kiosk to pay for another two days, being greeted by three turkeys there.

I suspect most or all the campers will be leaving today. I am not certain how long we will be staying here. We have only been here for four days. We will just see how it plays out, two days at a time. Heading north in the winter, the weather can be very uncertain. I try to get the weather forecast for the area we are departing from, and the new area we plan to stay. I don’t want to take down a camp in the rain, or drive in the rain, or set up a new camp in the rain.

I did not hear any critters in camp last night, but did notice there was a big hole chewed in the garbage bag at the trash can.

I began saying a small prayer for the spirits at each campground we stay at for permission to stay here, and for protection. I decided to do this in showing respect for the natural world within the seen and unseen. The natural world has been disrespected enough. Showing gratitude is a good way to begin this respect.

I had just learned this was a three day weekend, so there may not be any campers leaving yet.

Afternoon Entry

It is 3:20 pm. The beautiful clear weather we have had so far is now beginning to cloud up. It looks like rain may be near. I got the rain fly for the tent secured, and have the canopy up. We just got back from shopping, and I was trying to set up a meeting with a tribal elder. She was suppose to call me.

The wind isn’t too bad, and not bad enough to take the canopy down. The canopy is great to have for light rain. Heavy rain and wind, forget it. Some blue sky is appearing to the north, and almost above us. But that can always change. It is 61 degrees in the tent. We are definitely suppose to get rain this week. How much, who knows?

Evening Entry

During our journey in nature, I was hoping to connect on a much deeper level to nature, as with hopefully connecting to the original indigenous people in the areas we pass through on our journey.

Lets begin with the native people who lived in the Clear Lake area. The predominant culture were the Pomo Indians (Pomo – means ‘Dweller at the red earth hole’). Other tribes shared this area with the Pomo – the Yuki, the Wappo, and Lake Miwok.

The Pomo people lived in the Clear Lake area for over 11,800 years as hunters and gathers. With the perfect climate, and abundance of food resources from the lake, streams, and land, they flourished, living in peace, and harmony with nature. They built tule boats to fish, used obsidian from Mt. Konocti for tool-making, arrow and spear tips, and for trade with other tribes. They were, and are known for their intricate Pomo basketry made from plant material, and often adorned them with the feathers of birds.

When the Spanish began occupying this area, as with other areas in California in the early 1800’s, the Spanish enslaved and mistreated the native population. Then in 1826, the European settlers, and gold diggers began to arrive, and settled into the region, bringing their European diseases resulting in massive waves of death to the Pomo tribes that freed massive amounts of land for the taking by white settlers. Violence against the Pomo people then ensued bringing more deaths to innocent men, women, and children, for the sake of unconscionable greed.

Treaties were written and signed between the Pomo bands and the United States Government in 1851, and as with all the treaties made by the US Government with all Indian tribes throughout the US, they were eventually broken by the US government with full intent, and in the case of the Pomo people, they became landless. The process of cultural genocide and forced assimilation continued against all Indian people in North America by the European settlers. The United States method used was to “Kill the Indian, and save the man,” in any way they could with no moral justification. They just wanted their land, and they would just take it, or created laws to take it. Amazingly the Native American survived the horrific atrocities, and genocide committed against them. They have been able to maintain their cultures and traditions with great struggles, difficulty, and resistance by the powers to be. For those Indigenous Peoples who held onto their traditional values the best they could, with all odds stacked against them, with much pain, suffering, and hardship put upon them, they continue to persevere.

My feelings towards indigenous cultures are strong, because I know they play an important role in the very survival of humankind. We can learn from their knowledge and wisdom on how we can be better stewards of our planet.

A good example of this is how we have treated the land, and water of Clear Lake out of pure greed and disrespect for all life. It began with the white settlers and the mining of gold.

Clear Lake is the largest, natural freshwater lake in California, with 68 square miles of surface area. The lake dates back to the early Pleistocene era, more than 1.5 million years ago, and is believed to be the oldest lake in North America. It was once a healthy and productive ecosystem for tens of thousands years that supported humans, and wildlife. The Pomo Indians and their descendants lived on this land for thousands of years. They had a deep reverence for the land, water, and for all life, and understood the natural laws of the natural world. For the settlers, they just took with no understanding of the impact they were having on the original peoples, and on the land.

The most prominent of the region’s many volcanic cones is 4,200 foot Mount Konocti, just southwest of the State Park. Konocti is classified as an active volcano, although it has been dormant for thousands of years. The region is geologically active by the many hot springs in the area.

It is refuge and nesting place for many varieties of waterfowl. The wood duck nests in trees; mallard ducks find homes in the grasses and tules. Other birds including the herons, egrets, white pelicans, great horned owls, bushtits, northern flickers, red-shouldered hawks, red-tailed hawks, ospreys, bald eagles and many songbirds make this area their home. It can be argued that Clear Lake has more bird life than any other northern California lake, even though much of the lake is developed. The wildlife includes, deer, mountain lion, otters, gray fox, bob cat, coyote, raccoon, skunk, and on occasion, bear and elk. This area was also known for having a large population of grizzly bears until they were all killed off, as with the wolves.

The lake basin is surrounded by the rugged coastal mountains, covered in mostly thick stands of a variety of oak – madrone forests. At the lake level, there are grass lands, wetlands, marshes, and extensive riparian habitat systems, creating the perfect ecosystems for a wide variety of aquatic and terrestrial species of wildlife.

Since the operation of the Sulphur Banks Mercury Mine that began it’s operation in 1860 on the southwestern side of the lake. The 150-acre mine became one of the most noted mercury producers in the world. It produced Bortax, Sulfur, Mercury, and Gold. The mine closed in 1957.

Mercury has been continually leaching into the lake, and into the surrounding environment for over a century, creating health concerns for all life forms in the area. It had produced 2 million cubic yards of mine waste just on the property. Today, a flooded open-mine pit measuring 23 acres long and 90 feet deep is located only 750 feet from the lake – and it is filled with contaminated mine waste and natural geothermal water that continues to seep mercury waste into the lake bed. The poisoning of the lake from the mercury of the mine not only impacted the food chain from the lake, but also on the land. The very natural resources the Pomo and other tribes relied on for their very survival. Clear Lake is one of the most Hg- contaminated lakes in the world.

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designated the property as an official Superfund Site in 1991.

The EPA does not consider the mercury contamination to be high enough to ban swimming in the lake. As for fishing, only small amounts are recommended for consumption. Throughout California many lakes have such warning signs posted on the consumption of fish. This includes all aquatic life. This pollution often results in algal and Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) blooms making the water unsafe to swim in during the mid to late summer months. The presence of Cyanobacteria is linked with high Methylmercury (the most toxic form of Mercury) concentrations in bodies of water. The algae blooms are much more prevalent with the impacts of climate change due to the warming of lake water. Mercury and blue-green algae is harmful to humans, as with all wildlife.

I had learned that the campground we were staying in flooded one year. Which means the soils in the campground was contaminated with mercury. There was no clean up in removing the toxic contaminate.

I hope this provides you with a look at the impact we have had in the modern day world by the human race on our natural environment. All our lakes, rivers, streams, and much of our lands are polluted by man. The mining companies from the very beginning never took any responsibility for the impact it has had on the environment or on human health or other life. They were never accountable for any clean up of what they had left behind. But to be fair, neither did any other manufacturing endeavors. We were living in the industrial age, and progress and greed was Americas driving force. None of us really cared about the environment or the impact it was having on all life forms. And to a large extent, we still don’t in today’s world. We have little regard for the impact we have on the environment, or do we understand that it impacts all life, even human life. We are blind to these realities we have created. And in a very short period, of time, only a few hundred years, it is here to haunt us, and for the very survival of the human race.

We could have listened to nature’s call. We could have listened to the indigenous peoples warnings that nature is what gives us life. And the warnings from science, but we chose not to listen. We cannot survive without a healthy and sustainable world. Yet we continue to take from her, giving nothing back.

January 15, 2018 – Monday

From the clouds rolling in yesterday, and last night, and with the forecast of rain, I woke up in the middle of the night seeing a clear sky. This really isn’t any indication we won’t get rain. When we awoke in the morning, the sky was blue, 46 degrees, with a chill in the air.

Last night for some reason I felt most uncomfortable settling down in the tent. It was a feeling of me being in a different place. It felt I was oriented differently in a different direction in the tent. Strange things happen in nature. Maybe it was an atmospheric thing happening? Or maybe a full moon.

I was listening to a message from our camping friend, Kevin, from the San Francisco Bay Area. Him and his wife just got back from Maui, and while there, they had a missile attack scare. It was fortunately a false alarm, but scared everyone on the Islands. A scary thought that this really could happen in our unstable world.

Evening Entry

I was about to get dinner on and all of a sudden I was hit with being sick to my stomach. I wasn’t sure where it came from. The only thing I ate was some salami during the day. I had the need to purge, so I went to the restroom, then back at camp I put on some turmeric ginger tea that I had. Going to the bathroom and the tea seemed to work. I had another cup of tea for good measure. I am not a big tea drinker, but I forgot how soothing a nice tea can be. I brought along an assortment of teas with me by The Republic of Tea. Their teas are organic, with a nice blend of teas, and added flavors to make them very enjoyable and flavorful.

Didn’t get much reading done today. We picked up some more firewood, and we went for a walk. Besides doing the basic camping stuff we do, fire, cooking, going on walks with me and the boys, shopping, and picking up firewood, and occasional laundry. I have been doing a lot of reading which has been a main focus for me during this time we have been camping. And of course experiencing the time in nature, and with the boys. Although they can be a pain in the butt at times, they are really good as camping companions. They give me a sense of peace with their presence, as does the beings in nature.

The campground is a pretty nice place for walks. There is a creek we could walk along, parts of the lake is accessible, and around the State Park and campground. The trails through the mountains can be pretty rugged for dogs, so we stayed away from them, and for the reasons I could possibly get injured walking two big dogs. Most people are pretty good about keeping their dogs on leash, but not all, so I always have to be on watch for those not obeying the leash laws.

We got a little rain, maybe 5 minutes worth or so, but it provided a pleasant freshness in the air. I wasn’t sure how long the rain would last so I got the boys to come under the canopy to stay dry. They were happy to oblige. With our experiences in rain, and winds, the boys learned to find places to get out of the bad weather. They would go under the canopy, under the picnic table, or find a bush or tree they could find for protection. They also do this for shade on a warm day. They prefer the cold, the colder the better.

I am going to skip dinner tonight. The boys already ate theirs. I think we will go to bed early tonight.

My neighbors are a bit too noisy for my liking, but the rest of the campground is quiet. I feel much better than I did earlier. The tea must have helped.

I invited the gal who was camping across the way from us if she wanted to come by our camp to warm up next to the fire. She had very little camping gear, and she was sleeping in her car. I waited a bit for her, and assumed she wasn’t coming over, so I was getting ready for bed, when she finally came over. We had a nice evening chat, talking until 10:00 pm. The rain held off until then. Soon after getting into the tent, the rain started, hard at times. I had to close up everything in the tent. Getting comfortable settled in bed, I heard a thundering sound of a jet engine or of a missile launching. Since my time here, I have not heard any jets. And my imagination goes wild with the question of experiencing the beginning of a nuclear war? This was spurred by my friends experience in Hawaii. Can it happen? Of course it can. We live in a world where it is always possible with the mad leaders running the world.

January 16, 2018 – Tuesday

After checking the radio to find out if we were at war, nothing was spoken of it. I guess we are safe for now.

The funny, short, and chubby looking character that I first met when we arrived here, dropped by our camp, and we chatted for a bit. He found a trailer park in town that was cheaper then camping here by a third. The State Parks in California are expensive. I was paying $28.00 with a $2.00 Senior discount per night.

We were talking about different places we have been camping and he mentioned Del Valle, where me and the boys have camped. Talking more about Del Valle, I realized he knew our camping buddy Kevin. Kevin told me a story about this funny little man who likes to mooch beer from other campers. He ended up drinking all of Kevin’s beer while Kevin went to bed. It is amazing who one meets camping. After that I wanted to keep my distance. I had to call Kevin and tell him, guess who I saw?

The young campers, that were camping across from us seemed suspicious to me. When they arrived a couple of days ago, there was a girl and two guys. They had a family size tent, and each day they brought more stuff, like a huge mattress. The girl always stayed in the tent. And more people were coming into their camp. I gave the ranger a heads-up on them. The ranger checked up on their intent, and they were planning to live there for a month. The ranger kicked them out today. They were homeless. Good thing, I would have been concerned about our stuff if they got to stay. I was relieved they were gone.

January 17, 2018 – Wednesday

We have been in this campground for a week now. It feels like two weeks for some reason. I am still not sure how long I want to stay here. The boys picked up a lot of ticks yesterday on our walk. I hope I didn’t.

It is 52 degrees at 9:25 am. Rain is expected tomorrow.

I met a nice law enforcement ranger yesterday. I talked about our plans to head to Alaska. He mentioned having a strong interest in wanting to go there as well.

I had a good night sleep last night as far as I could remember. We got up at 8:30 am.

Since there are no magpies around, the scrub jays are enjoying the left overs from the boy’s dog food. Yesterday on our walk along the creek I saw a duck I have not seen before. It was similar to a wood duck in body form, but with a white body, some black markings, and a white head.

I have been reading Wayne Dyer’s books since I began this journey to help me get back into a deeper awareness of my sacred self. The feeling of doubt always seems to creep into my unconscious during periods of sleep. When awake I seldom think about it. Nature, and being with the boys comforts me. They wrap me like a blanket would against the cold, warming my very soul. I am taking a big step, a different direction in life, moving away from a synthetic life, a material life, to a life within the wondrous world in nature.

Evening Entry

Today after a late breakfast and chatting with our ranger friend Trevor,

we headed for town to pick up some flea and tick repellent. I then went to get some gas, and picked up a few things at the supermarket. I also dropped by the Indian Casino to talk with Lucy, the granddaughter, to let her know I still wanted to talk with her grandmother about the local tribes.

While driving back to camp I thought about how nice it was to stay with my dear sister for a few weeks.

The weather forecast was for rain for all of Thursday, starting in the early morning. Not looking forward to that.

Although I experience bad dreams while on our journey in nature, I do sleep better being in nature. I enjoy looking out my large window next to my bed viewing the stars at night, and in the morning experiencing first light of each morning, and looking out into the wonders of nature.

It seems the boys are sleeping well. Although they are not experiencing the same things I am experiencing, I am sure they feel better being in natural world. To be honest, our canine companions I believe, are happy just being with their human family, to be loved, and to give love. I am very fortunate to be with them 24/7. I could not see myself doing this journey without them.

This evening it was pretty nice out at 52 deg. at 7:05 pm.

January 18, 2018 – Thursday

I had a difficult night sleeping. It began raining lightly around 6:00 am or so. The splattering of rain drops on the tent woke me up. We got up at 8:30 am, drove to the main gate to pay another $56.00 for two nights stay. Having to pay every two nights I thought was ridiculous, because the campground was never full during the winter months. All campgrounds should have off season rates, and better senior rates in my opinion.

Back at camp, sitting in the rain, trying to figure out what I can do in the rain camping? I was sitting under the canopy staying dry, the boys were outside of the canopy getting all wet. Nanook finally thought maybe being under the canopy would be better, so he came to join me. And Takota was fine being soaked.

In front of me I saw 3 trees in camp, about 12 feet apart that could make a good spot for a lean-to for the boys. I grabbed a 10’x12’ tarps that I had, and used some rope that was close by to tie the tarp off to the tree’s for a ridge line. Then I used some stakes for the tarp to the ground. It was a perfect lean-to to keep the boys out of the rain. After the boys tried it out with some coaxing from me, they seemed to like it. I then fed them their breakfast in their new shelter. Takota liked it because it felt like a hiding place for him. Nanook ended up getting back under the canopy with me. It wasn’t raining hard, just a steady rain.

Since my trailer was stuffed with camping gear, it was at times hard to find things easily for any such projects. One thing I am not short of are tarps and rope that can have many uses for such things as covering things I might have on the picnic table from the weather and critters, a lean-to, covering firewood, or a tarp wall attached to my canopy on one or two sides. I also have good quality tarps I would use as a shelter for us when needed. As far as the placement of my canopy, I like to place it partially over the picnic table to cover the cooking area where I have my stove so I won’t get wet cooking. Makes sense! The other half of the canopy I would use is for a sitting area to drink my coffee, write in my journal, reading, or just being outside in nature, and experiencing nature, enjoying the sights and sounds in nature. It is also a place for the boys to lay down in if they choose. The best scenario is having the fire ring close by to receive the enjoyment and warmth of the fire close by, but not so close as to put burn holes in the canopy from the fire embers.

It is another beautiful rainy day. According to the weather forecast we have a two day break with no rain, then four days of rain. I may make the boy’s lean-to a bit better for the wet forecast. I have tried to prepare the boys and myself for almost any situation we encounter through gear we brought, and in clothing. As with the mental preparation in different weather conditions. The hard part is getting easy access to this stuff in my trailer. As for camping in campgrounds, it is pretty basic, I use the same stuff normally all the time, with the exception of clothing that may change depending on weather. I am somewhat covered in the clothing part, but at times, I wished I had my goretex coat on those rainy days was close at hand. I always try to have an extra change of shoes, socks, pants and shirts when needed to change out of the wet clothing. And there are times I get a bit lazy in being fully prepared for rain, and wind because the weather may come in fast and is hard at times to figure how bad it may get. But watching and knowing the weather can give clues on what it might do. I always try to be aware of the weather, even if I have a weather forecast.

In a survival situation or being in the backcountry I would be sure to be prepared the best I could. It could mean life or death.

I did put the lean-to up in the rain, so I did get a bit wet, but it was worth it. It will provide the boys with a dry area they can call their own, when we get bad weather. And it is good practice for me, as with being enjoyable for me in learning new skills. It also keeps the mind focused on the bushcraft skills fresh, for when I need them. Especially when I am in the bush.

I was possibly thinking about changing the campsite location closer to the lake, but because of the lack of trees there, I decided to stay where we are. Water has healing energy, but so do plants, and trees. It is always nice camping next to water, whether next to a lake, river, or stream, but for me I can take it or leave it. I enjoy being with the trees. And in the winter I like some added protection from the rain and winds.

For me the difference between camping in the backcountry, and in a campground is being very limiting in practicing bushcraft skills or survival skills in a campground. There are many restrictions as with things one just cannot do. I have seen people practice these skills where they damage trees, or damage the area somehow around them and not thinking about the impact they are making in the natural enviornment. If I practice any such skills, I only do curtain skills with very little or no impact on the natural environment. Or I just avoid doing them. I can always observe the natural surrounding that are part of survival skills. This also increases ones enjoyment, knowledge, and relationship with nature. The most important thing is to respect all nature as living beings that are part of the collective consciousness in all life forms.

In dealing with different weather conditions in campgrounds, it will prepare me in the backcountry to an extent. But in the backcountry it can also be more unpredictable.

Back in 2009 and 2010, I spent a lot of time in the backcountry practicing survival and bushcraft skills. You can read about these experiences in my blog, “Our Journey Into The Wilderness.”

When I practiced survival skills, I would ask myself, “What would I do in a survival situation (and assuming I was not dealing with an injury)? I would look for areas that would make a safe camp with good resources, I would look for water sources, the plants in the area, the trees, and animals. How long would I possibly be there? Is there a good source of firewood? These things help in enhancing ones awareness to their surroundings, and helps in the stress level one might be experincing. This even brings more enjoyment in ones experiences being is nature. One will feel a closer relationship with nature through awareness and observation, and with this relationship, she will provide for you those things you need.

Evening Entry

Today we didn’t do much, but watch the rain drops fall, I did some reading and worked on being in the present moment, where time does not exist. This is our natural state of being, but we have been taught, and conditioned out of this state of beingness as soon as we were born. It is like being in silence, at first it is very difficult. Both takes being aware of ones consciousness – becoming the watcher of the mind. During the mid-90s I went through a major transformation, and I became the watcher while going inward. I became aware of every thought, and all the thoughts went through what I call the “Gate Keeper” that discarded any harmful or unwanted thoughts, and let the good ones go through, that may help me on my spiritual path. I realized I was the one responsible for what thoughts I let in, and those I let go of. I had learned I was the one responsible for my actions whether good or bad. In our modern day culture we have been fed a bunch of useless garbage, and lies. Deprogramming who we truly are through the Matrix of our civilization. Changing this programming can be difficult, and one must have a good teacher for this reprogramming to help guide us in the right direction. We can become our own teacher by going deep within. Many use the practice of meditation to help quiet the mind, and enhance more awareness within and without. At first this process can be very confusing, and difficult because we have to relearn everything from the beginning – learning a completely new reality from the one we have been taught. We must forget, and toss away the old programming. One does not have to be in nature or leave everything in the past behind us and live in nature as I have chosen. But for me, I knew I could learn a lot from nature as a teacher, on this path I have chosen for myself, as with going within by asking questions.

There was a student of a Buddha master, asking the teacher, “will I have to give up all those things I enjoy doing?” The Buddha master answered, “those things you enjoy doing now, you will find are not as important as the experience you have in experiencing enlightenment.” I had that same concerned, and I understood what the Buddha master spoke of was very true. We loose our attachment to things we once put an important meaning to. This does not mean we can’t do those things, we just relate to them differently. We don’t define them as who we are.

I was talking to a friend today who lives in Redding, in northern California. The conversation was cutting in and out with bad reception. I was considering going to see her in Redding, but this means I would have to backtrack to get to Redding, as with going into higher elevations and dealing with snow which I did not want to do. I would love to go to Mount Shasta, but not camping in the winter, nor traveling at higher elevations in the winter.

The rained is heavy at times, and then it began letting up for about 2 hours. It allowed me enough time to cook dinner and having a nice break from the rain.

It is 6:00 pm, and the campground is peaceful and quiet. It was nice having the rain. We had a nice evening fire to finish off a nice day.

Originally I thought I did not want a canopy for our journey, but once I began using one, I realized the benefits it had in wet weather, as well as for good shade from the Sun. It allowed us to spend more time outside then being stuck in a tent. Our camping friend, Kevin gave us our first canopy. I also chose large tents for comfort when we did have bad weather that gave me and the boys more room to hang out. The down side with a large tent was finding a campsite where it would fit, hopefully on somewhat level ground, and being able to withstand high winds we may encounter. Our ten person tent worked well for us. We were still using the Columbia 10’x15’ tent that was working fine, but for how long? Most tents are not made for everyday use to live in. The material eventually weathers, and will start leaking or ripping through degradation of the material. I was curious how long this one would last. It was rated as a 3 season tent.

Takota was laying inside their lean-to shelter most of the day, and Nanook was laying next to me under the canopy. They did well staying out of the rain. I did not want wet dogs in the tent if I could help it.

At 6:15 pm it started to sprinkle again. I am not sure if I should open up the window flaps tonight. I keep them open as much as possible for fresh air and having more of an openness inside of the tent to the outside world. It seemed I was not to be bothered by the privacy issue.

The tent did well in keeping us dry.

A few days ago my mind was rushing about, being bombarded with unwanted thoughts. I was able to redirect that energy by imagining being on an Elliptical exercise machine where I was able to expel that negative energy through this imaginary exercise. After my imaginary exercise I felt refreshed, and strong. I used this mental exercise 3 other times, and every time it worked in releasing this unwanted energy. It basically transitioned into a rejuvenating energy. The mental exercise was only done for a minute or so.

January 19, 2018 – Friday

We woke up to clear blue skies, 39 deg. at 8:30 am. We had occasional showers during the night. I slept okay.

I got a fire going first thing, cleaned pots and pans, and put on the coffee, then began writing in the journal. My pen is almost out of ink. Time for a replacement. I brought a lot of pens and a lot of blank journals to write our experiences in. I go through a lot of pens. They don’t last long.

Waking up in the mornings to nature are wonderful moments to the new day. The boys and I going on our morning walks, the rituals of having a nice fire, drinking a hot cup of coffee, writing in my journal, and reflecting upon the new day. It is magical. These special moments I have dreamed about doing for a long time, and now doing. And having a tasty breakfast outside.

The crows were having a good chat this morning, the sparrows are out feeding, and a small covey of California quail came by our camp. A hummingbird also buzzed by while I was doing the dishes, then came back around hovering in front of me at eye level while I was kneeling down, showing his or her beautiful red throated sheen. He or she floated next to me for a brief moment, and in a blink of an eye it was gone. They are incredibly amazing creatures of nature. Maybe we will see the bald eagle fly by.

While lying in bed I was thinking about what a woman said about Alaska, “Everyday we play in Alaska,” meaning they live close to nature every moment. They hunt, fish, and tend to their gardens. What a great way to live.

While I am writing in my journal I hear the soothing crackling of the fire.

Evening Entry

After breakfast and a walk, we went shopping in town.

Today in the afternoon a thunderstorm came through, but left no rain in camp.

At 6:15 pm the sky is clear at 42 deg. with a breeze making it a bit chilly. A crescent moon is out.

Only one other camper came in today, and it was the annoying little chubby man.

January 20, 2018 – Saturday

Cold, cold, cold this morning. It was 30 deg. in the tent. I got a fire going, sipping on my hot cup of coffee, and sitting next to the fire. I am not that cold, but my feet are freezing. It is suppose to rain tomorrow, overcast on Monday and Tuesday, then rain Thursday and Friday. There are advantages in camping in the winter, and disadvantages.

It is a beautiful sunny today with a lot of bird activity at day break.

There is a lot of day use at the park, and there are many that go through the campground, which I am not crazy about. One older woman said, “I would never trust those dogs,” referring to my sweet, loving dogs.

It is a pretty quiet Saturday at the campground. Three campers plus us are the only ones. There are a lot of fishing boats out on the lake. Because this is a State Park, there is a lot of maintenance going on, which means a lot of noise, such as leaf blowers, and lawn mowers.

Evening Entry

It has been a nice day, though it looks like clouds are beginning to move in. The camp is rain and raccoon protected. I am not sure if I should close up the window covers for the night. Not sure when it is suppose to start raining on Sunday?

A few more campers came in today, but looks like low key campers that should hopefully be quiet.

January 21, 2018 – Sunday

We woke up to a chilly 36 deg. with overcast skies. We had no rain during the night. So far the rain is holding off. The morning Sun wants to peak through the clouds.

I am finding I am not so inspired to write much here. If I were to say here much longer, I would write much more about the Mercury Mine, and the Pomo Indians, and as with exploring the area more, but it is not part of our plan. The area around the lake is pretty much built-up which makes it even far less attractive and far less enticing to be here. If it had more of a quaintness to it, it would definitely have a better feel for it. But for me, I would be consumed with the toxic lake and it’s surrounding, and the impact it is having on the health of all life here.

I forgot to mention, Lucia is back. The gal that I was talking with last week. She camped a bit further away from us. Maybe I scared her off. She is going through a lot of things from her past, and maybe she just wants to be alone.

Our friend, fat man (loosely speakings) came by our camp. His real name is Mark, He was drunk, loud, and obnoxious. He reminds me of the town drunk always looking for a free drink of alcohol from an unsuspecting camper. Much of what he talked about was hard to swollow, or he had a tendency of making it bigger than it was especially with a few beers in him. His story about Kevin at Del Valle was quite different then what Kevin had told me, and I would tend to believe Kevin’s version, over Mark’s. But Mark makes an interesting character on our journey.

It began to shower later in the day, and while I was sitting under the canopy, the boys were laying down under the lean-to. With the spattering of drops hitting the canopy, the water dripping down to the ground around the perimeter of the canopy, and with the gray skies, and chill in the air, it felt more wetter then it really was. When I went to do the dishes, the rain turned into a light drizzle that felt very pleasant, and refreshing when it touched my exposed skin.

On our evening walk, there was still a light rain falling, yet it was steady. It seems this may last into the rest of the evening, but one never knows. The boys were wet, and I was wet. We will retire early.

January 22, 2018 – Monday

It rained most of the night with a light rain, and a short down pour. I had to take Takota out in the middle of the night and the rain let up into a light mist. The rain was off and on during the night.

I slept pretty well during the night. When we got up it was partly cloudy. We are suppose to get more rain Wednesday and Thursday.

I found a small leak in the tent where the window flap joins the main tent material at the stitching.

There were black bird at our camp this morning. The first time we have seen them here. Any birds are always welcome in our camps.

There are only 3 campers plus us that are left here in the campground.

Our firewood supply is almost depleted, so we will pick some up today.

The rain as with the wind, or the combination of the two. does make camping interesting, and challenging. Although we have gotten some rain, it has not been too bad. The hardest thing is keeping everything dry the best we can. So far I have not had much issue with the tent, and the inside of the storage trailer is staying dry. Mold can also be a problem that I keep an eye on. I do enjoy light rain, and always before the storm, and after the storm. Everything feels fresh after a rain, a feeling of rejuvenation, and beauty. Camping in the fall, winter and early spring are the best times to camp for me. But the further north we go the worse the bad weather we will experience. I chose to try an Easy Pop-Up tent to see how well they work. One of the most important thing for me is the ease of putting up a tent since I have to do it alone. And I found the tent is overall quick and easy to set up once the tent is balanced at all the support poles. If any wind is blowing, forget it. Taking the tent down is very quick. Putting it back in the tent storage bag is another story. I find that putting on the rain fly can always be a challenge especially when doing it alone, and especially with the wind blowing, even in a light wind. The height of the tent is also a factor, as with the length. For those who are lazy like me, if the guy lines are not tied up, they always get all tangled up making the job even harder. Because this tent is tall, and long (15 ft. long), Once the tent is firmly in place, I put the rain fly on at the midpoint of the set up of the tent, then attaching the rain fly to the tent making it much easier to put on. I then raise the tent to full height and lock it in place. It usually takes about an hour to have the tent ready to sleep in. If there are no winds or minimal wind, I may choose to keep the guy lines unstaked, because inevitably, I will trip over them, or the chance of the boys getting tangled up in them. I always make it a habit to get the tent set up first when we arrive in a new camp. So if we do get bad weather we have a protected place to hunker down.

I have noticed we get more quail coming through, or near camp after a rain. I have also noticed the dark-eyed juncos coming around. I always enjoy birds visiting our camp, and once they realize the boys are harmless, they feel safe in our camp.

I was reflecting on all the beautiful country we will be experiencing when it comes to nature and going through the Pacific Northwest, and seeing the Pacific coastline. I wanted to originally avoid the coastline due to weather, but going through the passes to the east, we will be most likely hitting snow conditions that I don’t want to deal with, especially dragging a trailer along. So staying to the west it is, and dealing with whatever rain we get. I should begin planning our route through northern California.

The nice thing about winter, there are no bugs. Also I can keep our tent door open while in camp. Takota likes his private time in the tent, so if I leave the door open for him, he will spend a lot of his time there. He has always felt comfortable in the tent.

I had a Coleman tent prior to when we began this journey, and they designed a swing door for the tent. It was a nice feature to have, but I don’t personally like the poor quality of their tents.

People who walk the campground on their day walks are getting to know me and the boys. The boys always attract attention because people think they are wolves.

This is our 14^th day. We have seen campers come and go. We have been here for the longest time, out of all the campers we have seen thus far.

Evening Entry

We picked up more firewood, and picked up a few things at Safeway. When we got back to camp, we went for a walk, and did a little reading. It is nice having a good supply of firewood. It is a bit chilly out with the wind blowing.

I got a weather report from the gal at the kiosk, Tuesday good, Rain Wednesday and Thursday, then nice for about a week or so. I was thinking about leaving next week, but we may stay for the whole month. I am loving this life style. Sleeping in a tent, being with the boys, and living amongst nature.

I was talking to a sweet lady and her sweet golden retriever, that I see on her morning walks. She told me I should hold off going to Oregon until March to avoid the worst weather. I will try to hang out for a month here in California that shouldn’t be a problem, especially if we stay here for another two weeks.

While I was cooking dinner, the boys were getting excited about something, and when I looked over in that direction they were looking, I saw a guy standing there. He was saying something, but I couldn’t understand him with the wind blowing and with Takota barking. So I walked closer to this stranger to see what he wanted. He told me he liked our camping layout. We began talking and he told me he and his dog are camping for 6 months in his trailer. He is from Washington state. I had to cut our conversation short because I was in the middle of cooking dinner. I told him, Mike was his name, we will be around for a while and we can chat later.

The wind finally died down around 7:15 pm. It was time to have a small campfire.

January 23, 2018 – Tuesday

The morning is overcast, 42 deg. at 9:30 am.

The first thing to do is to get a fire going and the coffee brewing. I slept pretty well, but woke in the middle of the night with those dream like concerns of our travels up north and to possibly wetter weather. And trying to avoid it if at all possible. I could feel my stress levels rising when I think of the what if situation. But it can also be helpful in being prepared as much as possible. I have to see this journey as an adventure. Challenges will always come, and just accepting them, and dealing with them as they come, staying in the present moment. One of the challenges I had was the limited stay we had for each campground, usually 14 days maximum. Always planning to leave on a Sunday or Monday for our next campground, and hoping the weather will be favorable for us, both in our departure, and arrival to our new campground. I always try to get the weather forecast for both areas. I want to avoid breaking down camp in the rain, and setting up camp in the rain. As with dealing with two big dogs. If I had another person for a helping hand I would look at this differently, but I don’t. I have to do all of it myself. Finding a good campsite that will fit our large tent and my truck and trailer is always with uncertainty, but getting there on the first part of the week always gave me better choices of campsites. All these campgrounds were new to me and I never knew what to expect. But amazingly, as you will see, our formula for living from campground to campground worked with a little help from the Helping Spirits.

This morning I had a protein drink for breakfast. I bought some bird seed at the store, so I could share it with the birds around camp. I spread some bird seed around, but we had no takers yet. From my little experience, once a bird knows there is feed, they share it with the whole bird community.

Today I will pile the new firewood up and keep it covered for when the rains comes on Wednesday. Take a needed shower, do some shopping, and dry off some moisture from under the bed air mattress.

It is a pretty quiet morning at the campground.

Last night I was thinking about the process of making change in my life. It is simply by making a choice in do so. But many times we will experience resistance by the ego mind, stopping us in our steps. I remember doing this during the mid-90s, and every choice I made, it seemed to appear very easily, just by making that choice of the person I wanted to be. I knew I had guidance from within. It was like I had a down load which created the shift in my consciousness, in my awareness. I was experiencing these shifts. My deep awareness was shifting slowly though in my relationship with nature on this journey.

Evening Entry

I didn’t get all that I wanted to get done today because I was talking to Kellie to long. Kellie and her husband just arrived as new Camp Hosts for this campground. There is also another Camp Host here as well.

I did get the firewood stacked and covered for the rain coming. I got the underside of my air mattress dried. My previous air mattress was getting mold from the moisture I was unaware of, and got it replaced. Black mold can be very dangerous if breathe in. I then went to the store. I didn’t take a shower, so I will do it before the rain starts in the afternoon.

Our new neighbor, Mike dropped by camp again tonight, and our chat lasted longer than I had hoped, so I gave up on cooking dinner. I fed the boys, and fixed me a salad for dinner. I had a good conversation with Mike, and he gave me some good input on where to go up into Oregon, and Washington to camp. I would like to get into Alaska in early June if possible. He also reminded me of the exchange rate, and gas could be much more expensive in Canada. Mike also gave me an idea of the weather I will be dealing with up north.

The unusual bird call I have been hearing a lot is not a raven that I was thinking it might be, but found out it was a heron. It is hard for my brain to keep track of all the bird calls we encounter.

January 24, 2018 – Wednesday

I slept pretty good through the night, but had disturbing dreams in the early morning.

While scratching Nanook I found two ticks embedded in him. I got up to pull them out, then went back to bed. We got up shortly after 8:00 am. We went to the front gate to pay for another two days.

It looked like rain as soon as we got up, and soon, a light rain began falling. Occasional drops of rain would fall while writing in the journal and preparing breakfast. After breakfast, and before the rain began falling harder, I thought I should take a shower before it really started to come down. After the shower I felt clean and refreshed once again, like a spring flower.

Afternoon Entry

It is 3:45 pm, and it has been raining all day, but it was mostly very light continuous showers. It can be nice being out in the wet weather as long as one has protection from getting wet. This type of weather is when a canopy is very nice to have. I was spending some time under the canopy enjoying the day, and the boys under their lean-to tarp. I was beginning to get wet, and the boys were getting wet. So we got into the truck, took a short drive to the gate entrance, and I kept the truck running to warm up. While there, I called a friend and chatted a bit with her.

When people live in RV’s they usually stay in their home away from home much of the time, especially in bad weather. They want all the comforts of a real home. To me this is not camping. The reason I chose to do this journey in a tent is to truly experience nature in all her seasons, and not hide from them.

Evening Entry

It is 6:05 pm, we took a nap in the tent from the rain. I heard some talking outside, so I went outside to see what it was. The campers across from us were packing it up. Since I was already up I got the boys dinner ready and brought their water and food in the tent. I then got everything closed up for the night. I went without dinner.

The people across from us told me they were packing up to move to another campsite because a branch fell on their trailer roof and broke a skylight on their new trailer. The guy was also telling me, him and his wife while walking back to their camp from the restrooms were charged twice by a deer buck. I thought that was unusual. Maybe it was the cause of mercury exposure that can effect the brain. I will have to keep a close eye out on the deer here. I reported the incident to the park rangers. Whether the guy did report it, I am not sure. I hope he did. I have not seen any deer in the area since we have been here. This should be considered a big issue. I was wondering, would the buck charge a guy with two big dogs?

Most of the trees in the campground are Sycamore, and are prone to branches breaking off. I need to assess my campsite for any possible widow makers. I am sure, as I was, people think the campgrounds are safe from unsafe trees falling or branches falling, but they are not. This concerns me. I remember when I was camping in the Sierra Nevada mountains, a campsite across me had a huge pine branch that snapped and was laying across the picnic table. With California dealing with a drought, the trees will be much weaker. Widow makers can cause a lot of damage, and can kill people. There is no way to know if and when a tree may fall that seems to look healthy. It should be common practice to inspect all tree in a campsite for any damage to trees, as with dead branches.

I should know better then to set up a tent under certain trees, or dead branches, but sometimes I will miss them. Since I arrived at this campsite, it was getting late and I was in a hurry to set up camp. I missed some dead branches, and limbs over my tent, and some large branches and limbs over my trailer. I had oak trees in my campsite.

January 25, 2018 – Thursday

Rain, rain, rain.

We woke up to 38 deg. at 8:00 am. It looked like blue skies were heading our way. The thunder showers during the night were off and on, and mostly on. Overall it was light showers.

I was cold much of the night. My feet were cold, and I had a slight chill that lasted the night. I checked the temperature and it was 40 deg. I was thinking I shouldn’t be cold. Then it dropped down to 30 deg. and I felt warm. This happened to me at Del Valle also. This may have to do with how I sleep. If I sleep on my sides I have less surface area of the sleeping bag against me. When on my back or stomach I have more sleeping bag surface against me. I believe I was using my 20 deg rated bag. It was also an extra large bag that would not be as efficient for my body size.

Another reason I could have been colder was because I was wearing wet cotton Levis all day drawing heat from my body until I went to bed. The common rule for camping, and going in the backcountry, is to leave the cotton clothing behind, because cotton kills. I had many solutions to stay warmer, and if I felt I needed them I would have used them. I am seeing these things as observations, and adjusting to the situation if need be. I am wearing my rain proof pants today.

Right now at 11:15 am, the Sun is trying to peek through the clouds, and a bit of blue sky showing itself. On days, and nights like this, I would think, how nice it would be having a camping trailer right now. But then I would miss the beauty and experience being outside in nature.

The birds are out feeding on whatever they can find. The quail are also out feeding. For me, I am drinking my coffee, writing in my journal, next to a warming campfire. How good can it get? At the higher elevations in the mountains, there was snow. At this point I was getting a bit tired of the rain. I was thinking, will a tree or branch, fall on us, or on the trailer or truck?

Sometime during the night, I heard crashing and thought, raccoons? I didn’t see anything in camp. It may have been those critters getting into the trash cans which they tend to do.

I was talking to one of the rangers, Heidi, about cutting down some branches around my camp. She just laughed. While talking with her I saw a bald eagle flying along the shoreline of the lake.

After a rain shower I looked toward an oak tree with the back drop of the Sun shining through, and illuminating droplets of water falling to the ground, like diamonds falling from the sky and upon the earth – beautiful.

Evening Entry

I checked out some other campsites and decided on Site #40, only two sites away from us. Depending on the weather we will move camp on Friday or Saturday. The forecast is for nice weather for the next five days or more, which means no rain. We need rain. Rain is the life force of for all life. And I do appreciate all that rain gives to us. It provides so much beauty in it’s many forms, in rain itself, in snow, and ice. But it also has to be respected, as with all life forms. I knew I would have to deal with rain, snow, and ice on our journey. I wanted to experience it, embrace it for all it is. For it’s beauty, and for it’s challenges. In our modern world we have lost our very understanding of the natural world and the role she plays which is the very thing that gives life to all life. The many problems the human species face is due to the lack of respect, and the separateness from nature. This is why I chose to live this lifestyle – to gain a deeper appreciation, respect, and connection to her, and for her.

I have to start figuring out where we are going for our next camp.

Overall it was beautiful today with it’s on and off thunder showers. But too much rain can get to ones sanity, especially camping in a tent, and being cold and wet. It can be very trying, and yet so beautiful at the same time. We still have a few more months dealing with wet, and windy weather heading north.

I lost it with the boys tonight. Whatever it was, they were just being dogs. Usually when I react to them, it is out of my own frustration about something, and not them. They have been great on our journey. I couldn’t ask for more. Well maybe, them not liking other dogs is, or can be a big problem.

We will see if we move to the other site tomorrow, weather permitting.

January 26, 2018 – Friday

We got some showers last night. It got cold in the middle of the night, so I put a blanket over my sleeping bag and that did the trick. We woke up to 34 deg. with a possible low of 29 deg. For my weather data, I am using an “Oregon Scientific Wireless Weather Station,” product that is suppose to give me all the weather data that I need. I am not sure how reliable it is though. I just use it for the temperature overall, and not sure how accurate that is.

It is chilly out, but with welcoming blue skies. A good day to move. It will be a safer site as far as trees go.

I slept pretty well, but I have been having these re-occurring dreams of me fighting with my brother. It would be a lot of yelling, and mostly from me. I am not sure where these dreams and anger comes from. But they would pop-up on occasion. They are terrible dreams. I would have these types of dreams with me yelling at my mom all the time. And in reality, I did this out of frustration. But with my brother, overall we had a great relationship. He was a good brother that on occasion loved to pick on me when I was younger.

I will have a cup or two, or three, of coffee, feed the boys, then begin to packing up and start moving camp.

One piece of gear I am glad I purchased was a Cabela’s 60 Qt. Polar Cap Equalizer Cooler. It is similar the Yeti. It wasn’t cheap. The holding space is minimal due to the insulation added, but it is an essential gear for camping. It is also bear proof. I can usually get five days worth of food in it using a 10 lb. block of ice. The typical ice chest may last two and a half days maybe. The hard part is finding block ice. It is not always available. Crushed ice melts to quickly. I will use my regular ice chest for backup or storing food that is non-perishable. I also have two ice chests that fit in my bear proof panniers, but only use them in bear country, and just used for non-perishable foods.

Afternoon Entry

The move to our new camp went smoothly with a little help from a neighbor, but I did 98% of it. We even had time left to do some shopping. I like the new site with no concern of widow makers striking our camp. We also have a nicer view of the lake as long as a camper does not block our view with a large RV in which one just did. I hope he is there just for the weekend. I also have a nice view of the lake from my large end window in the tent that is facing east. I get to wake up to the morning Sun. We have a lot of leaf litter around camp that the boys like to lie down in, especially Nanook.

I finished setting up camp before 4:30 pm. No cooking tonight. I bought a whole roasted chicken for dinner, and a beer or two. The boys had kibble, ham, and cheese. It was a good day, but I am tired. I will finish the last touches on the camp tomorrow. I have a little more peace in knowing I won’t have to worry about widow makers. I think the boys will like this camp better as well.

The lake is as smooth as glass, the setting Sun is shining on the other side of the lake. Each moment I feel much better about my choice to move here. I also have the whole section to myself. Supposedly we are getting 10 days of nice weather. If the weather is good, we may leave in 10 day, and I decided our new camp will be Richardson Grove State Park.

Evening Entry

Mike dropped by for a chat. We were talking about how cold it was getting. I checked the temperature at 6:15 pm, and it was 39 deg. The coldest it has been during the evening so far. The boys don’t mind the cold. They actually like it. For them, the colder the better.

Although we have had rain, wind, and cold, there is nothing like being this close to nature. We are living and experiencing nature. My goal is to go deeper into the experience with nature – to be fully one with nature in each moment.

January 27, 2018 – Saturday

I had a little upset stomach during the night, but slept pretty well for the most part. Maybe it was from the beer I drank.

I had all the window flaps open, enjoying the beginnings of the dim morning light coming through the tent, although subdued by the overcast skies. I do see some clear patches of blue sky peeking through, as well as above the silhouettes of the sycamore trees, and one medium size oak tree that surrounds our camp. This is one reason I like this tent with it’s large window openings letting nature flow in. All the trees were without leaves, but the oak. The branches and limbs spreading out like cobwebs against the gray background of the cloudy sky. Some areas looked like scattered clouds, but realizing it was the silhouette of the trees. An amazing sight to behold.

It wasn’t to cold during the night, maybe 40 deg. and rose to 43 deg. in the morning. The coldest part of the early morning is usually around 4:00 am when there is a drop in temperature.

We finally got up around 8:30 am. The sky was clear one minute, and cloudy the next. At 9:50 am it was completely overcast, but still pleasant to be outside. We did get a very light sprinkle for a short period in the wee hours before Sun rise this morning.

I was having a problem getting the fire going this morning. It just didn’t want to cooperate. Finally it is burning well now. The stove was working well. My coffee was brewing.

Being outdoors in nature gives one a greater sense of freedom, and also an appreciation and responsibility for what was given to us on this beautiful home we call Earth.

A lot of bird chatter going on this morning that began around 7:30 am. Mostly by the crows. While laying in bed I was watching a tiny bird hopping and flying to the limbs, and twigs effortlessly. Birds are amazing creatures to observe in awe and wonder. They have an amazing sense of depth perception and balance. Birds essentially make one eye do the work to allow it to have depth perception. Birds have the best eyes of any animal. Birds can see objects in fine detail two-and-a-half to three times farther away than people can.

I just had a thought of Shiloh and I being in our wilderness experiences together. I sure do miss him. You are always with me, my good friend. (You can read about our adventures in my blog, “Our Journey Into The Wilderness”).

At times it is hard being out here in nature, being consumed with my thoughts of doubt, and uncertainty. Asking the question, “Was this really the smart thing to do?” My answer, is always, “An emphatic Yes!” Most of the time it is the only place I would want to be, especially being with Takota and Nanook (referred to as the boys).

Evening Entry

Eventually the cloudy skies turned to blue sunny skies with 60 deg. temperatures, extending for 5 days or so. Looking forward to that, with the exception of possibly bringing more people out camping.

I got the firewood stacked in a pile, then did some ready. I had a late breakfast that turned into my lunch. I still need to organize camp a little more.

Many times I will spend most of my mornings writing in my journal that may take up the whole morning. Sometimes the entries are short, most of the time I am not sure what I will write, I just write what comes to me. Sometimes, I have nothing to write, my mind is blank, and that may turn into a very short entry or turns into a couple of hours of writing. Usually my afternoon and evening entries are short, but sometimes not. Or I will sit in reflection or observe things around me, the beauty in all things that is nature, being in silence. For most people, this will seem very boring, but for me, it is a time just to enjoy inner peace within. Being in a magical place of gratitude.

I was not always this way. I always had to stay busy doing stuff like so many of us seem the need to do. But then I eventually found that silent place where I stopped needing, and began just being.

January 28, 2018 – Sunday

We went to bed on a clear night. I woke in the middle of the night with sounds of a pitter patter on the roof of the tent. I knew it wasn’t rain, so I looked outside from my large picture window, and the whole area was covered in a blanket of fog. I was way to comfortable and warm in bed, and decided it would be okay keeping all the window covers open. I felt tiny splashes of moisture hitting me on my face, but nothing to be concerned about. If it got any worse, I would get up and close the window covers.

When we got up it was still foggy. We went to the kiosk to pay for another two days, then returned to camp.

I thought I would use some bushcraft skills to start the morning fire. With all my kindling wet, I tried the feathering stick method to get to the dry wood. It would light and then go out. It just wouldn’t take. So I grabbed a fat wood stick, I scraped some shavings onto the feathered sticks that wouldn’t light, then feathered the fat wood, and lit the fat wood stick that I placed under the kindling. And we have fire.

I roughly figured the cost of camping at campgrounds, and it is expensive. The benefits camping at campgrounds are the restrooms showers, or pit toilets, potable water, trash disposal, picnic tables, fire rings, the convenience to towns, and the safety of life and property. The other options would be BLM lands, forest service campgrounds, or boon docking, and dispersed camping which are free, or much cheaper, but with less accessibility in the winter. And may not have the simple necessities like water, trash, toilets, and the safety of my stuff. There were other reasons, but for simplicity, I chose the State Parks to stay in, in the beginning of our journey. I also like spending more time in each place, usually the maximum two weeks, so I can learn more about the area.

Mike and his faithful companion, Mr. Dundee dropped by twice to chat. Mike gave me the weather forecast and the weather outlook is good for the next 10 days.

Evening Entry

After a very late breakfast, it was getting into early afternoon. I took the boys for a walk, then to the store for food.

Most of the weekend campers have left.

After putting everything away as far as the food goes, we went to visit Mike and Dundee at their place. The boys liked Dundee, and Dundee liked the boys, but he seemed to like me better.

We didn’t get much done today in camp.

January 29, 2018 – Monday

I slept well with nothing too exciting happening last night during the wee hours of twilight. It was all quiet, and peaceful. It is 10:00 am and still cloudy. Looking out towards the lake I noticed a flash of an image in flight, flying low along the shoreline. It was a bald eagle.

Evening Entry

I got a few things done in camp, but not everything I was hoping. I usually never do. Things move slowing living in nature, and taking more time then expected to get things done. I just need to learn to slow down to the rhythms of nature. Taking one thing at a time, one step at a time.

We went over to talk with Mike, and saw four bald eagles flying by. That made my day.

Mike picked up some Mexican dinner in town for us, and we ate it at our camp. It was pretty good. I haven’t has Mexican food for a while. It was a nice treat.

It is easy talking with Mike because we have a lot in common, at least as camping, and being in nature goes. He is not into the spiritual part, our deep relationship, and connection with nature, but most people aren’t. I stay away from that conversation. I am very selective on who I talk with on that subject. Being spiritual is an individual journal one takes., It is not about following a religion and it’s dogma. One does not have to follow rules, but one does realize a Truth that guides each one of us. It is always a choice that we make that will guide us on the path of right or wrong. We gain most of our important lessons from our mistakes.

It was overcast much of the day. There were parts of the day where blue sky appeared, then vanished as quickly as it came with clouds covering up what blue sky appeared above. The beauty of nature in her endless changes and forms.

It is 7:15 pm, overcast and there is the movement of a small breeze coming through. It is not too cold out this evening. The only expected Sunny day is on Friday, but no rain for the week.

Today I was checking out what campgrounds are on our way north. I was looking at a magazine Mike gave me to look at for possibilities for camping. I was looking forward to experiencing the beautiful Pacific Northwest and the magnificent Redwoods.

It would seem that one would have plenty of time to get thing done living this lifestyle, but surprisingly it is not. It seems there is never enough time. Maybe it shouldn’t matter, and just go with the natural flow. Nature seems to pull us away from the non-important to the simplicity of experiencing the beauty in nature. Allowing us to deeply connect to all things in the natural world.

We are near having a full Moon. It lights up the whole area with it’s amazing moon light glow, 238,900 miles away. The Moon has an important relationship with the Earth, making Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet’s wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate. It also causes the tides, creating a rhythm that has guided humans for thousands of years. It has helped the animal kingdom to maneuver the world. And it is simply a beautiful thing to see in our night sky. I am sure we would feel lost without its presence. Our planet, our solar system, and our galaxy, has a special relationship with each other, as does our galaxy have with the whole Universe. Its natural wonders, beauty, and awe that always delights and expands our imagination. And how it created this beautiful planet of ours.

Mike and Dundee came by this evening and asked if we wanted to check out some animal tracks in the reeds along the shoreline of the lake. I said, “Sure.” So I got the boys leashed up, and we enjoyed a walk in nature under the moon lit sky.

We made this walk short due to me and the boys getting tangled up in roots and brush.

January 30, 2018 – Tuesday

It was a cold night sleeping. It was in the low 30s. I had to go outside to pee twice on this chilly night.

This morning I got to watch the sunrise come up from the comfort of my bed.

Today we will be running around doing some shopping for food, and picking up some firewood.

Evening Entry

I got some reading done, we picked up more firewood, and got a good deal on it, dropped by the Museum and it was closed. Then food shopping.

Had dinner then met Mike and Dundee on the beach for a moon rise. I got some good shots of the moon rise. We then went to our separate camp sites. It is another beautiful moon lit night. Today turned out to be a beautiful warm day with a temperature of 65 deg. The good weather is suppose to continue for a couple of weeks. Yahoo!

January 31, 2018 – Wednesday

We awoke to blue skies, a cold 32 deg. and another beautiful day in nature.

Looking out the large tent window while still laying in bed, I was admiring a young tree next to my tent. At first thinking it was an oak, although I thought it did not grow like an oak would. I realized looking at it closer that it was a sycamore. It grows straight and tall, a beautiful tree.

As soon as we got up, we went for a walk and checked out the lake, and what I saw of the lake, it looked very unclean on the surface – it looked unhealthy. It was a lake that was polluted by man, as with so many other lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans on our planet. We have used these valuable natural resources as places to pollute, dump our waste, and garbage. There is now a large plastic island floating in the oceans, known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch that consists of huge amounts of plastics that has been dumped in the Pacific, and washing up on beaches. In Hawaii and else where. We never thought about the devastating impact man has had on the natural environment, on human life, and on all wildlife. And we still don’t for the most part. When we did begin to better understand what we had done, and continued to do to the air, the water, to the land, and to the natural ecosystems as a whole through science, our actions to remedy the problems have moved very slowly to fix them. America’s solutions have always been to bandage the problems, to find the easy fix. The main reason for this is we did not want to look at the real problem, we did not want to change our ingrained behaviors. We did not want to stop progress. We did not want to truly see what our relationship, our interconnectedness was with nature, and with all life forms. We believed man was the ruling species, with it’s supreme intelligence, and arrogance, and greed. We believed that our planet is here for the taking, and to do with it as we please.

We could have learned a better way if we were only open to the knowledge, and wisdom of the indigenous peoples, instead we tried to destroy them, and erase them from existence. Although this attempt of extermination did not work, it created much suffering and hardship to the native people for many decades, and continues on today. But these native peoples were able to survive these horrific atrocities, and cultural genocides against them, by the aggressors. Because they were suppose to be here.

If we did listen, observe, and learn from the indigenous peoples, maybe that would mean moving away from our destructive behavior, halting the greed, and the destruction that drove modern societies. In our very short time we have been in North America, we have done so much damage to this land, to the water, and to the air. The very things that give life.

If we could only see deeply, what our relationship is to all life, can we truly stop the destruction we are doing to our planet. We are slowly moving in that direction, but we are also now facing a dramatic change on our planet due to climate change, which is upon us now, as with many other distractions, and social madness we face in the world today.

We are moving slowly to more of a sustainable planet. We are slowly becoming greener, we are becoming more aware. But until we change our paradigm in the way we see nature, in gaining a deeper relationship with nature, and seeing the Oneness in all things. Little will truly change in dealing with the bigger problems, the deeper problems we face, until we begin to wake up to this illusion we have been living.

Last night it didn’t begin to get cold for me until after 1:00 am. I slept pretty well, with weird dreams keeping me company.

Before deciding to get out of bed, a crow flew on a branch next to the tent. I watched him, and when he flew off, we got up.

The simplest things in camping brings back how things may have been done in the old days, like doing dishes. The only thing I really need to wash are my frying pan, rinse out my coffee pot, and my coffee cup. I use paper plates to eat from. I do have plates, but rarely use them, It just means more dishes to wash. The water sources here are water faucets next to the roadside and campsites, that I have to kneel down to do the dishes, and usually getting all wet in the process. Many campgrounds don’t want people to do dishes at the water source. But many do anyway that tent camp.

This morning I was washing the frying pan at the water faucet for cooking breakfast, and an older gentleman who walks his toy puddle everyday along this road, stopped, and his poodle came to me to give me a good sniff. Maybe thinking I have food for him.

We met up with Dundee and his dad. Mike is taking Dundee to the Vets. The poor guy is not doing well with all his tick bites.

The Sun was warming the air on this beautiful morning, and I felt a sense of peace at the watering hole while washing my frying pan. Who would think one could experience such a feeling in cleaning a frying pan? For some odd reason, I am finding a little enjoyment in the process of doing the dishes once in a rare while. Go figure?

Bass fishing is a big sport at Clear Lake with the annual Bass Fishing Tournament they have. Once the Bass are weighed in they are released back into the lake. As far as injury to the fish, studies have been done on the mortality rate of fish in catch and release due to injury or the stress of the fish they endure. Something to think about? Do we think about the stress, and harm we perpetuate on these creatures? The fishermen are out for the enjoyment of fishing, the competition, and possibly winning a big pay check. They really don’t think about the harm they may have on the fish. And those who go out just for the enjoyment of fishing and catch and release, which are probably most that fish in this lake, creates a possibility of injuring the fish. Something to think about? Do they think about the stress, and harm they perpetuate on these creatures? Unlikely. We tend to see them as objects, and not living beings.

Some catch the fish for a food source. But don’t they know the fish are very unhealthy to eat because of mercury contamination? And what about the wildlife that consume the aquatic species? They don’t know that the very food they eat can kill them, as with effecting their young. Don’t we care what impacts man has on the environment that impacts all life? Maybe we should think about that? It is unfortunate that most people have not grasped the idea in our modern world, that we are all connected to all life.

Afternoon Entry

I was talking with a birder who has walked through the campground before, and he told me the black masked birds were the dark-eyed junco. I also asked about the elusive bird I saw back home, but with my poor description of it, he had no idea. He also told me that the young sycamore trees don’t develop their branches that are characteristic of the adult trees until much later. I hope I can meet more knowledgeable people on our journey like this gentleman. He loved to share his knowledge.

Evening Entry

I got some reading, and writing done. And dried the boy’s beds in the warmth of the Sun.

February 1, 2018 – Thursday

The first of February, we made it this far. We haven’t done a lot of miles, due to weather, but getting close to two and a half months camping. I feel I could do this indefinitely. I love camping, sleeping in a tent, living in nature, and being with the boys. The boys are truly a gift. Although I don’t care for the restrictions in the campgrounds as far as how long we can stay, and reservations required at some campgrounds, it is something we will just have to deal with I guess. And dealing with loud and disrespectful people. Other than that, I am loving this journey I have chosen for us.

I had a good night sleep followed by some weird dreams. I did my meditation, and felt great.

Unless we have rain, or wind, we usually have morning and evening campfires for warmth, the calming effect, and the nice fragrance of the wood burning.

It can be hard at times observing nature or photographing nature unless we stay in camp. I always have to worry about dogs off leash, and trying to hold on to these two big dogs, making it difficult in focusing on photography on our walks. But for now that is not a priority for me at this time. But then again, this can change any time. I haven’t had any luck sitting down with the two elders for a chat, so I am giving up on trying to get a hold of them. They won’t return my calls, so whatever reason, I am not going to give any more time trying to contact them. Native Americans have their own time that is different then most of us who are always running after time.

In camp I was watching black birds looking for food by lifting leaves on the ground with their beaks. It was also nice observing the sycamore trees as well.

We went to the Museum, and I did a quick walk through. I picked up two books. One was on the history of Clear Lake, and the other on the Pomo Indians. The cost of both books, $51.00. I really shouldn’t of bought them, but I did.

February 2, 2018 – Friday

I slept well this morning, and waking up to a blue sky.

A lone fisherman paddling near by our camp on the calm lake, paddling here and there waiting for that tug on the line, hoping for that strike at any moment. Is he fishing for sport, or for a meal? My thoughts are on how toxic the lake is that is invisible to some. Unless they know the history of the lake, or have been warned not to eat the fish. Or they catch and release, putting stress on that fish for the pleasure of the sport for ones own selfish gratifications the fisherman gets. Maybe in hopes of landing a big one. Or it could be the act of fishing that provides the calmness, and peace one experiences while fishing on a calm lake or stream, and the sensations and feelings one experiences being in nature. Maybe for some, it is just being on the water. It can be a form of meditation for some, or simply experiencing the excitement of the catch, and landing the fish, to pose for a photo to show friends. For the native people who have been here for thousands of years, it was for sustainability, to feed their family or in sharing with their group. They did not know the concept of fishing or hunting for sport. They had a higher respect for all life they took, and thanked the animal for providing for them. Unfortunate we in the modern world had forgotten this – in giving thanks for what our planet provides to us.

In my younger days I probably would have fished here, and would have even eaten my catch, not knowing, or ignoring any warnings of the mercury content in the fish, and within the lake. But I am now experiencing a greater respect for nature, and the impact I have on her in the things I do.

I watched the fisherman in his kayak, gracefully moving upon the surface of the water, and observed the seagulls floating peacefully on the lake. There was a quiet calmness in this idyllic scene I was experiencing. I imagined I was in Europe. I don’t know why? It just felt that way. Then I spotted two Canadian geese flying over the lake heading in a southerly direction that added to this wondrous experience I was having. And then came the vibrational humming sounds of the motor boats, breaking that magical spell I found myself in.

Being next to the fire, writing in the journal, I experience the wonderful scent of the wood burning. It is about 55 deg. this morning.

We were visited by the black birds and juncos this morning, as we are most mornings.

It will be laundry day today.

Saturday, and Sunday I will start getting the camp broken down and preparing for our departure on Tuesday.

The nice thing about living in nature are experiencing, and observing the simple things that captivate us, inspire us, and allowing us to be in the beauty of the moment in nature.

I am sure it would be nice having the modern conveniences in a RV, but that isn’t really camping. Being in a tent one feels the pureness in nature. It awakens us to a deeper connection to nature. Nature provides us with many small gifts. Two of my favorite gifts are being with the boys on this journey of ours.

Evening Entry

We spent most of the afternoon at the laundromat.

Being used to having the Moon coming out early in the evening, it was nice having the Moon light lightening up our surroundings. Because the Moon rises later each night, the stars once again begin to fill the night sky.

We had six new campers that arrived.

February 3, 2018 – Saturday

The six campers that came in yesterday were all quiet, but one. The one that was not quiet were basically teenager. They went on until 3:00 am. I mentioned it to them that quiet time was 10:00 pm. They said they were sorry, but a sorry that meant with no sincerity. Of course I reported them to Trevor, the law enforcement officer, and he talked with them as well. Will it do any good? One never knows.

I reflected on when I was young, and I did the same thing with friends. It is part of being young, and having a sense of freedom. They really don’t know better, they just want to have fun. But in our society kids are not respectful to others unless they are taught by their parents, and society, especially the respect for nature. It is just a part of growing up. Kids want to be wild and crazy at times especially during adolescence. I thought I was a good, and responsible kid overall, but things change when the teens hit. Most lose all sense of being responsible. Sometimes it is more fun being a rebel. I dealt with this a lot during at my camping at Del Valle. My purpose while in nature was to experience silence, and a deep connection to the natural world, and the last thing I wanted was to be dealing with loud and obnoxious people being disrespectful to all things around them. But that is asking for a lot in our society that were never taught that nature is a place where we show respect and reverence to.

In campgrounds, sound travels good distances from the source. Being in a tent I have no insulation from any sounds. It seems sounds are amplified, making it difficult to sleep when there are loud campers. Could I have dealt with this disturbing noise by just letting it go, instead of holding onto it through anger? Possibly. We can’t change peoples behavior through our judgments, but we can change how we see things as being good or bad, or simply as is. Because I had the opportunity to talk with the young campers, and reporting them to the Park Ranger, they may have thought about being quieter. But there is no guarantee that they would, especially if they are drinking alcohol.

Dr. Wayne Dyer had a great quote: “If you think you need to be right, replace it with being kind.” Another words, choose being at peace over being right. I spent a little time reflecting on this.

There is an occasional light breeze that comes and goes through camp. We are getting a lot of birds coming to visit our camp this morning.

Afternoon Entry

To show a kind gesture to the young fellow campers, I offered to pick up some firewood for them if they wanted some. In a polite gesture, they responded with a no thank you.

I picked up an enough firewood to last us on our remaining time here. Anything left over I can bring to our next camp. I also picked up a few things at Safeway, then we headed back to camp.

Before heading back to camp I decided to check out the Big Valley Rancheria. From what I saw the Rancheria consisted of the Konocti Vista Casino Resort, and Marina (I read some of the reviews and they were from very good to very bad). There was a smoke shop across the street from the casino, an area of fairly new housing, and an area of run down housing. It also had an EPA office. I am sure there was more that I did not see.

I continued on the road past the casino, toward the lake, and found myself in the poor housing section. The road turned into more pot holes then a level surface, where I was facing a game of dodging each pot hole.

Children were playing just of the pot holed roadway, paying little attention to me. Two Native American men were standing on the front porch of a rundown house, holding rifles. I was thinking maybe I shouldn’t be here? So I went a little further where the road ended and where the lake began. A sign was posted that read, “No Trespassing, For Tribal Members Only.” So I turned around. On the dirt road heading back from where I came, one of the men from the house I just passed was walking towards me with a rifle. Again, I thought, maybe this was not such a good idea? I stopped to talk with him. His name was Chris, a Pomo Indian. I asked if it was okay to talk with him, and he said, “sure.” The first question that came out of my mouth was, “Is this all that is left of your land (referring to this location, this Rancheria)?” He responded, “That is it!” That question began an informative conversation with Chris. Chris was very open in answering the questions I was asking, which I was very grateful. We talked about the lake being so polluted, talked about the Pomo language still being intact (at least one dialect), that some families still speak in their family unit. I asked about the casino, whether it was a smart thing to do? Chris told me, mostly the traditional portion of the tribe thought it was a bad idea. The non-traditional thought it was a good idea (the non-traditional refers to the Native Americans who have been heavily influenced by the white man’s ways through lies, and deceptions). There is a lot of political differences and fighting between the traditional and non-traditional members of the tribe. This is common throughout the country. Chris said, “there is a lot of corruption that further sets the tribe’s people apart. We then are all losers.” I thanked Chris for sharing with me. There are two Rancheria’s in the Clear Lake area. The Big Valley Band at the southwest part of the lake, and the Robinson Rancheria at the north shore of Clear Lake. Only two small patches of land left to the original people of the area, that they once occupied.

Talking with Chris created more questions in my mind. It also made me want to spend more time here to learn more about the Pomo people. One of the reasons to go on this journey was to connect with different tribes. It was unfortunate I could not meet up with the two elders I was trying to connect with. It was frustrated for me because I wanted to connect more to the Native Americans on our journey, to seek to understand.

I really appreciated Chris’s time, but one thing I forgot to do, and that is very important in the Native American traditions, was to give a gift. I could have given him tobacco, but I did not think about it at the time, and I feel bad about that.

Evening Entry

It was a beautiful and warm February day at Clear Lake.

After writing in the journal I saw Mike coming toward our camp and I waved him over to thank him for leaving more information for our travels. Doing this full time it is very helpful in getting potentially valuable input from other people on good places to camp. Although I have different perimeters than many people, it can at least give me an idea of where to go. I have very specific needs for a campsite to work for us. It is not like just finding a patch of dirt to throw a small tent on. It feels like I am basically moving blindly through unknown lands, and hoping each place I select to camp works out for us. I don’t want to be stuck somewhere trying to find a place to camp.

As always Mike and Dundee stayed longer than expected. It was nice talking with Mike, but I like making conversations short as possible because it eats up valuable time in trying to get things done. Mike needed to go, and I needed to get dinner going. Mike took some photos of me and the boys before he left.

Mike was thinking about possibly leaving on Monday heading towards the Napa area to the south. There were wild fires in that area he had to be aware of.

Although I enjoy being alone with the boys, it was nice having Mike and Dundee around for our brief chats.

I may rethink my departure date, and leave earlier on Tuesday. I want to get moving to explore new areas. We have been here long enough. I do wish we had better luck talking with some Pomo elders.

The mosquitoes are starting to come out. It has been getting lighter early in the morning, and getting darker later in the evening. The days are getting longer which is a nice welcome. We had another beautiful night to experience in nature.

More campers came into the campground today. The temperature was in the 70’s today. Today was a great day to be in nature.

February 4, 2018 – Sunday

I slept well last night. It was a quiet and peaceful night.

This morning is cool and partly cloudy, with blue sky showing in areas.

Not much to write about this morning. Most of the campers are leaving today.

I will begin preparing camp to leave today. I am still not sure if I will leave on Tuesday or Wednesday. Either day, we should be assured in getting a campsite at Richardson Grove State Park campground. I hope!

I haven’t seen much of the bald eagles the past few days. But I haven’t really been looking for them. They may have been flying by our camp without me even noticing them. I am sure I will see them up north. I am looking forward to seeing and camping in the Redwoods.

I am surprised in seeing so many campers camping on the weekends during this time of year. And I am surprised it has also been so quiet overall.

Evening Entry

I got the canopy taken down and put in it’s bag. I put some things away in the trailer and got the trailer a bit better organized, if that is even possible. We will go shopping tomorrow. The weather is suppose to be very good for a Tuesday departure.

Relaxing in camp with the rest of the campground very quiet.

February 5, 2018 – Monday

Today it is 46 deg. at 8:30 am, with light overcast. Pretty comfortable this morning. I am only wearing two layers of top clothing, and no jacket.

I slept pretty well last night. The campground was quiet, and even the raccoons were quiet, and staying out of trouble for the most part.

I feel good today, ready to start a new day. I am excited and ready to move to our new camp.

When I was staying with my sister, she asked me if I was going to stay at Richardson Grove State Park? I told her I would try. For my family, and before I was born, Richardson Grove was a yearly destination for the Family camping trip. My dad loved this place, so I wanted to visit it, and maybe dad’s spirit will be there with us.

Overall the experience here was a good experience, and the people are nice. The biggest disappointment was not being able to connect with the Pomo people, with the exception of being able to talk with Chris.

While I was cleaning the dishes at the water spicket, a lady walks by me and stops, asking if we were leaving? I told her we will be leaving soon. She said, she will miss us. We talked for a bit, and I told her I was hoping to talk more with the Pomo people, and she told me she wrote a book on the Pomo Indians. It was one of the books, I had picked up at the Library, and was reading. We had a nice conversation, and she was very knowledgeable, and a very nice woman to talk with. Her name was K C Patrick, her book is, The Pomo of Lake County (Images of American: California).

Evening Entry

There are times out in nature I can feel stress coming on, but it doesn’t usually have anything to do with nature, but the thoughts I have in my head. There are also times where it can be totally black outside, complete silence, alone, and I can feel completely at peace in the moment. Seeing nature as a companion, a good friend, and teacher. I have not felt any fear so far on our journey. Some doubt, and uncertainty, but no fear. I feel at home in nature. The boys help with their company. The other night my mind was thinking scary things that might happen at night, and I could see how if I allowed it to happen, I would be scared to the bone.

I got all my shopping done. I will pack up the rest of the gear, and I will fill up the gas tank tomorrow. And we will head north into the magical Redwoods. The drive time will take about 2 hours 45 minutes.

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Blogs In Nature

Experiencing Nature through Stories and Photos

Category Archives: Our Journey Living In Nature

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 11

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 10

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 9

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 8

The Passing of Takota

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 7

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 6

Our Journey Living In Nature – Part 5